And it’s not just that Americans aren’t donating to fight Ebola. They have directed tremendous animosity at Ebola victims and health-care workers providing humanitarian aid. There’s the predictable hate speech coming from the likes of Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh. Twitter and Facebook are filled with mean-spirited comments like this one:

Across the Internet, comments have disparaged Craig Spencer — the New York City doctor who volunteered with Doctors Without Borders in Guinea and contracted Ebola — and his fiancée Morgan Dixon, branding them “dirty hippies” and inviting harassment by posting their home address. His selflessness should be celebrated as heroic; instead, he’s treated like a villain.

AD

AD

Why aren’t Americans making charitable contributions to fight Ebola? It is in Americans’ best interest to donate because containment of the disease in West Africa is key to preventing its spread to the United States. Moreover, why is so much hate directed at those suffering from the deadly virus as well as those coming to their aid?

People want to feel good about their charitable contributions. They want others to think well of them and often bow to social pressure to give to certain causes. They are most likely to give when doing so fosters social connections with others.

AD

AD

But for most, charitable giving for Ebola appears not to inspire these positive feelings. Africa is frightening and alien to some Americans. The politics of Ebola are infused with racism and xenophobia. There’s a perception that somehow Ebola victims are to blame for their disease, and therefore not deserving of assistance. Americans often treat poverty — at the root of the Ebola epidemic — as a moral failing. The problem is overwhelming, and to many, it seems hopeless. Fighting Ebola is about preventing loss of lives — sadly, many will die no matter what we do — a goal more abstract than rebuilding houses or schools. There’s nothing feel-good about Ebola, and so we turn our backs on the victims and aid workers.

I implore Americans: Please give. Please support health-care workers and other fellow citizens who are enlisting in the fight against Ebola in West Africa. You aren’t just helping save lives in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. You’re also defending this country against spread of Ebola here. Ask your family and friends to do the same. Numerous governmental and non-governmental organizations are fighting Ebola in West Africa. (You can learn more about the track records of these and other organizations at Charity Navigator and GiveWell.) Every one of us has the power to make an impact.