Donating clothing to the salvation army is a good thing to do.

[txaslftist]

Especially once they don't fit you anymore. Instead of just discarding those clothes, you should box them up, remove them, and give them to the needy.

[Liberal Veteran]

1. Well, maybe another group....I don't like the SA.

While I am sure they do good work, they are part of the homophobic sentiment sweeping America.

[eyesroll]

2. I prefer Goodwill.

But the sentiment is the same.

[Richardo]

3. All the time. Usually Purple Heart or St Vincent de Paul

I'm always amazed that a two-person household like ours ALWAYS has a minimum of 12 bags to give away. How can that be? :shrug:

[papau]

10. St Vincent de Paul every few months - the collection bins are easy

to find

:-)

[Sequoia]

4. I've done it for years and even go there to look for stuff.

Seriously, sometimes they have furniture on sale and you can find good items and there's no shame in recycled products...you're saving the planet and letting retailers know you will not spend $159 on a cloth clutch purse, or $60 for a pair of Levis.

[Misunderestimator]

5. And give them to Goodwill.... fuck the Salvation Army.

[dubyaD40web]

6. I disagree.

I had to serve community service at the SA when I was a kid. I had to go through all the bags of clothing that was donated and the SA person told me if the clothes were not "perfect", then throw them away. I couldn't believe it. One little thread hanging and it was gone.

I'd much rather give it to homeless people.

[Nikia]

12. I worry about that

With the exception of a few items of clothing that I didn't really like that much in the first place, I generally wear my clothes until I wear them out, sometimes longer than I probably should. The shirt that I am wearing right now, for example, has a small hole almost at the bottom of the sleeve.
I have a hard time getting rid of clothes at all, of course. I can't really actually throw them away, not after I've had intimate contact with them for years. I am at the point now though where I don't have enough dresser or closet space for them. If I donate them, I actually do want them to be worn.

[ohio_liberal]

15. Most of the unusable

clothing is either recycled as wiping rags or sold to third world countries now. It's big business.

[papau]

7. the salvation army earned the donation in the 30's when they were all the

poor had to survive

other charities ignored or went at half speed at the problem.

Of late the have lost a few points - but they banked a huge amount of "points" in the 30's.

[Misunderestimator]

9. What an organization did 70 years ago doesn't mean much when

what they do today is discriminatory and hateful.

[Jessica]

8. I take mine to the local Women's Shelter ...

I recently dropped off an embarrassing amount of shoes. Hope they went to good use.

[jmm]

11. Just be careful

My brother lives near a Salvation Army drop off bin. Some nights when I visit him we'll look out his window and watch swarms of people raid them at night.

Without being judgmental about what organizations people donate to if they have a sign asking people not to donate at a certain time please pay attention.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

13. I've been giving clothes to a local pregnancy aid center

which respects a woman's right to choose.

This center caught flak for helping women find safe, affordable abortions; and lost funding from the Catholic Church as a result.
The women who go there are mostly from low-income families, so the center welcomes donations of all sizes of clothing.

[cally]

14. I recently donated to a local center that supports homeless

families and folks just getting out of homelessness. I used to give to Goodwill but this was a completely different experience. I had unopened sodas and snacks from the campaign and asked if they could use them. Yep! I had binders, file folders, staplers...barely used. They wanted these. I had a few blankets and that's what they really wanted. Homeless folks need blankets. I went home and cleared out my linen closet and brought more blankets. Goodwill in my area doesn't want blankets, pillows, or linens. They just want things that sell. That's not a bad thing, but I'm more careful about where I donate.