- Date:
- 1881 - present
- Areas Of Involvement:
- humanitarianism
- American Red Cross Month
- American Red Cross Month 2016
- Related People:
- Elizabeth Dole
- Clara Barton
- Mabel Thorp Boardman
American Red Cross
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What is the American Red Cross?
The American Red Cross is a humanitarian and disaster-relief organization in the United States, and a national affiliate of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. Social reformer and nursing pioneer Clara Barton founded the organization in 1881 to assist Americans who were disaster victims or serving on the battlefield.
Supported by donations and proceeds, the Red Cross has approximately 35,000 employees and nearly a million volunteers working in about 800 local chapters. They offer services such as disaster relief, blood collection, community assistance, support for military members and their families, and health and safety education.
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When and why was the American Red Cross founded?
The American Red Cross was founded in 1881 by Clara Barton, a social reformer and nursing pioneer, after she witnessed the work of the International Red Cross in Europe. Barton sought to create a U.S. organization to offer assistance to Americans in times of disaster and to those serving on the battlefield. The American Red Cross provides services that include disaster relief, blood collection, support to military members and their families, and health and safety education.
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What kind of work does the American Red Cross do?
The American Red Cross is a humanitarian and disaster-relief organization. They respond to around 66,000 disasters every year. Red Cross workers offer shelter, food, and health services. They also provide financial assistance, transportation, and medications. The Red Cross acts as a connection between people and government and insurance agencies.
In addition to disaster relief, the Red Cross collects blood donations, accounting for almost 40% of the U.S. blood supply. They also support military members and their families, assist the economically disadvantaged, and provide health and safety education, such as CPR and first aid classes.
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How does the American Red Cross help people during disasters?
The American Red Cross (ARC) responds to around 66,000 disasters every year. These can include fires, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, hazardous spills, transportation accidents, and explosions.
ARC workers offer aid, providing shelter, food, and both physical and mental health services. They can also give financial assistance, transportation, medications, and tools. The Red Cross serves as a connection to government and insurance agencies, and they provide long-term support when other options are exhausted.
The ARC has international affiliations that allow them to provide aid and development programs abroad, such as help after the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan and India, immunization programs in Africa, and housing programs in Sri Lanka.
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Why is blood donation important to the American Red Cross?
Blood donation is important to the American Red Cross because the organization oversees the collection, testing, storage, and distribution of blood donations. The Red Cross coordinates blood donations, collecting almost 40 percent of the U.S. blood supply. The blood donated is tested to ensure that the level of hemoglobin is satisfactory and that there is no risk of transmitting diseases, such as AIDS or hepatitis. It is then split into its component parts, particularly red cells, plasma, and platelets.
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How can students or young people get involved with the American Red Cross?
The American Red Cross relies on nearly a million volunteers who provide expert training and labor. It offers various avenues for students and young people to get involved with the Red Cross.
Opportunities include:
* Volunteering The Red Cross depends on volunteers for disaster relief, community assistance, and health and safety education.
* Donations The American Red Cross is supported entirely by donations and proceeds from Red Cross products.
* Health and safety education Getting involved in CPR, first aid, and lifeguarding classes.2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
American Red Cross, U.S. humanitarian and disaster-relief organization, a national affiliate of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. In 1881, after observing the success of the International Red Cross in Europe, social reformer and nursing pioneer Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross to provide assistance for Americans suffering from disasters or serving on the battlefield. Barton served as the agency’s president until 1904. Under her leadership the Red Cross provided assistance during the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, flood of 1889 and the Galveston, Texas, tidal wave disaster of 1900. During the Spanish-American War (1898), it provided food and medicine to civilians and U.S. armed forces in Cuba.
Governance of the American Red Cross has traditionally been provided by a board of governors. The seven-member Cabinet Council serves as an advisory board. In the early 21st century, the American Red Cross had some 35,000 paid employees, who worked in 800 locally supported chapters. The organization also relied on nearly a million volunteers, who provided expert training and labour.
The Red Cross responds to tens of thousands of disasters each year, including fires, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes, hazardous materials spills, transportation accidents, and explosions. In the field, Red Cross workers provide shelter, food, physical and mental health services, financial assistance, transportation, medications, and tools. The Red Cross also serves as a liaison with government agencies and insurance agencies, and when all other avenues have been exhausted, the Red Cross provides long-term assistance. Through its affiliation with the International Red Cross and Red Crescent, the American Red Cross also travels internationally to provide disaster relief and establish development programs. For example, it provided help after a 2005 earthquake devastated parts of Pakistan and northern India. Other international projects have included immunization programs in Angola, Kenya, Sudan, and Bangladesh and a housing program in Sri Lanka.
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In addition to providing disaster relief, the American Red Cross oversees the collection, testing, storage, and distribution of blood donations. Other services include community assistance to the economically disadvantaged, support for members of the military and their families, and health and safety education, such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), first aid, and lifeguarding classes.
The American Red Cross is supported entirely by donations and proceeds from Red Cross products. Approximately nine-tenths of the organizational budget is earmarked for humanitarian efforts. The American Red Cross also depends on practical support from a wide range of individuals and organizations and on its collaboration with other health organizations.
As with any other public health service organization, advocacy is part of the essential work of the American Red Cross in its mission to serve and protect the public. Therefore, it works with legislators and administrators at all levels of government to pursue the public interest. The advocacy function involves developing policy statements, testifying at hearings, generating position statements, and serving on external task forces and committees.