Push to get cash for Pulse shooting victims
ORLANDO: An advocacy group for crime victims will oversee the payout of some of the millions of dollars in donations raised for victims of a shooting at an Orlando gay nightclub in an effort to deliver aid as quickly as possible.
As of Thursday afternoon, $5 million (R75.95 million) had been raised online for the victims by Equality Florida, a gay rights group that has decided to distribute the money through the National Compassion Fund, a unit of the non-profit National Center for Victims of Crime.
There are other private fundraising campaigns for the victims of the massacre, including campaigns to benefit specific individuals, but so far only Equality Florida has sought the Washington-based centre’s help in managing the money.
The victim centre’s executive director, Mai Fernandez, said the fund planned to disburse emergency money after the authorities confirmed an official list of those present during Sunday’s massacre at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub, where a lone gunman killed 49 people and injured 53 others.
Distributing money to the victims of mass shootings, terrorism and other major crimes can be a fraught process, raising thorny questions about the value of human life, how applications will be verified, who should be making the decisions, and how quickly aid can reach those in need.
While countries such as France, Italy and Spain have government-run funds that provide benefits to victims of acts of terrorism, the US largely relies on a patchwork of state-level aid for crime victims and private fundraising efforts.
The National Compassion Fund was set up in 2014 to help speed up and streamline the flow of private funds, as well as co-ordinate efforts on a national level. The Orlando massacre is the fourth shooting for which the fund is collecting contributions.
Victims and survivors could also be eligible for compensation from public funds.
The US federal government helps states pay for crime-related expenses, including funeral and burial services, medical treatment and mental-health counselling.
The Florida attorney-general’s office is processing dozens of claims through its victim compensation fund, a spokesman for the office said.
The state could also receive money through the $50 million Anti-Terrorism Emergency Assistance Program administered by the Office for Victims of Crime, which is part of the US Department of Justice.
According to Florida law, state-distributed victim compensation that reimburses losses is capped at $25 000 or double that sum in the case of a “catastrophic injury”.
Fernandez said it was too early to say how much in private aid the Orlando victims could receive in total. – Reuters