Singletary: Compassion needed beyond the cause of the day

There are so many others out there who are struggling to make it to work, but because their story isn’t extraordinary, they don’t receive the same empathy as the Detroit walker.

Robertson’s good fortune demonstrates that people are eager to help those they think are worthy. There are many other men and women taking buses and subways for several hours a day to get to and from work. Their jobs aren’t close to where they can afford to live, or public transportation doesn’t extend far enough. They aren’t a so-called “good story,” so we don’t feel for them. But we should.

“There is growing evidence that transportation — particularly access to automobiles — plays an important role in shaping the residential location choices and economic outcomes of low-income households,” wrote researchers from the Urban Institute, the University of Maryland and UCLA in a report released last year. “Automobiles and high-quality public transit services can enable participants to better search for housing as well as provide access to potential employment, services, and other opportunities within a reasonable travel time.”

An earlier report by the Brookings Institution found that workers in low-income suburban communities on average “can access only about 22 percent of metropolitan jobs in low- and middle-skill industries for which they may be most qualified” — in 90 minutes commuting time.

And what more can we do?

Give regularly, as part of your budget, even when you may not know the backstory of the person in need. We should be moved to help even if the person’s story isn’t extraordinary. How about donating your old car to a charity that gives it to someone trying to get to a good job? When people want or even need another car, their old car is typically traded in to help reduce the cost of the next one. My husband and I never trade in a car. We fix it up and give it to someone we know needs transportation.

Whenever I write about low-income families and their struggles, I get criticized if I show concern. Why don’t I preach financial responsibility?

It’s been my mission, my passion to talk about ways to manage money well and the virtues of hard work — things I learned from my grandmother Big Mama. I recall in one major snowstorm, when the roads were too dangerous to drive, she walked 2 miles to work and back. She had to leave before daylight. She set an example for me.

Still, as a society, we need to show compassion for the underprivileged. Even people who make poor decisions deserve help to lift them from poverty.

So, no, I’m not feeling all warm and fuzzy about the $350,000 that was so easily raised for Robertson, because far too often people are generous only when they feel someone deserves the benevolence.

Before the car and the $350,000, Robertson said something in a video posted by the Detroit Free Press that we ought to remember, because he knew it wasn’t just about him. “I figure even if my situation changes, you never forget that there are so many other people that are in my situation.”