What Is The Red Cross and Why Is It Important?

Annie Caldwell

Global-Econ

Word count: 938

Henry Dunant a Swiss businessman and social activist founded the Red Cross, one of the most well known Nongovernmental organizations dedicated to health, in Geneva Switzerland in the mid 1800s. It was originally named The International Committee For Relief For The Wounded, but was changed in 1876 to The International Committee Of The Red Cross because they started doing more than just caring for the wounded.

Dunant wanted to start this organization, because when he visited Solferino Italy for a business meeting, he was witness to the Battle of Solferino, a battle in the Austro-Sardinian war and one of the bloodiest battles of the 19th century. In one day, around 40,000 soldiers from both sides were either dead or left wounded on the field. He was shocked at how little care was being given to those injured, and how there was little to no medical attendance. He abandoned his original plans, and instead provided medical attention and help to those that were wounded.

He later wrote a book about his experience, and published it with his own money. In this book, he outlined a plan that said that the nations of the world should form relief programs to help those wounded in war. The program should - be sponsored by a board of the nations leading people, appeal to every person to volunteer, train these volunteers to treat the wounded in battle and care for them until they are recovered. In 1863, Geneva lawyer, and president of the Geneva Society for Public Welfare, Gustave Moynier found Dunant’s book very interesting, and brought it to a meeting of that same society. Five men along with Duntant created a committee that explored the possibility of putting Dunant’s plan into action and subsequently formed the Red Cross. On August 22nd 1864 twelve nations signed the Geneva Convention treaty which guaranteed neutrality for those helping the wounded (known as sanitary personnel), made sure that they got supplies quickly and to adopt a signature identifying sign which is in almost all instances a red cross on a white background.

Clara Barton, one of the first women to gain a job in the federal government, is also the founder of the American Red Cross. She visited Europe, and heard about the International Red Cross. Once she got back to the United States, she continued pursuing the Red Cross and the treaty. Barton tried several times to get the American Government to sign the treaty. She first took it to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1877 but he rejected it. She took it to his successor President James Garfield who was supportive and seemed ready to sign it when he was assassinated. Her third try she took it to President Chester Arthur who signed it in 1882, and a few days later it was ratified by the senate.  

In 1881 with the signing of the treaty up ahead, Barton along with a group of supporters started the American Association of the Red Cross. The organization was given charters - a document outlining privileges and purposes - in both 1900, and 1905. The charter given in 1905 provided the foundation for the American Red Cross we know today. Clara Barton was 60 years old when she founded it in 1881, and would go on to lead it for the next 23 years. The amount of things that Barton did during those years blows my mind. The American Red Cross was mostly devoted to disaster relief for the first 20 years. In 1881, the Red Cross flag was flown for the first time in America when Barton expressed a public appeal to provide funds and clothing to aid victims of a disastrous forest fire in Michigan.

Before the First World War, the Red Cross introduced its first aid, water safety and public health nursing programs. When the war began, the Red Cross experienced huge growth. The number of local chapters went from 107 in 1914, to 3,648 in 1917. The number of members also increased from 17,000 to over 11 million junior and 20 million adult Red Cross members. The public donated large amounts of money and material to back Red Cross programs including the ones for American forces, Allied forces, and refugees.

After World War Two, the Red Cross implemented its first civilian blood donation program that now supplies over 40% of the blood and blood products in the country. During the 1990s, they arranged a large modernization of the blood services to greatly improve the safety of the blood products and continued to provide support to members of the armed forces and their families, during the Korean, Vietnam, and Gulf wars.

Although it started out as mainly helping the wounded after wars, the Red Cross has expanded it’s sights to civil defense, CPR/AED training, education about HIV/AIDS and providing support and emotional care after natural disasters. Since 2006 the Red Cross has worked with FEMA to help other governmental organizations to plan, integrate and administer the feeding, shelter and reconnecting family members of those affected by natural disasters.

The Red Cross is really important because it gives other smaller organizations hope. It shows that one man’s idea, and dream can turn into something incredibly useful, and very well known. It gives students the inspiration to follow their dreams, and to try and achieve their goals because they might start something big with one little thought. I know that reading about the Red Cross has inspired me even more to pursue my dream of becoming a nurse and I hope the Red Cross can keep inspiring and will keep teaching for many more years to come.

MLA CITATION

: "Henry Dunant - Biographical". Nobelprize.org. Nobel Media AB 2013. Web. 1 Oct 2013. <http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1901/dunant-bio.html>

"Our History | American Red Cross History." American Red Cross | Disaster Relief, CPR Certification, Donate Blood. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2013. <http://www.redcross.org/about-us/history>.

"Clara Barton | American Red Cross Founder | Who is Clara Barton." American Red Cross | Disaster Relief, CPR Certification, Donate Blood. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2013. <http://www.redcross.org/about-us/history/clara-barton>.

"History of the ICRC." International Committee of the Red Cross - ICRC. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2013. <http://www.icrc.org/eng/who-we-are/history/overview-section-history-icrc.htm>.