Visions of Charity

"The collapse of community and the death of character have become familiar laments, but few commentators offer positive solutions grounded in solid empirical research. Visions of Charity examines how people develop "moral selves" through acts of service to the needy. Through her balanced assessment of the moral meanings that volunteers attach to their service activities, Allahyari charts a way to reinvigorate our sense of community and character."—Robert Wuthnow, author of Loose Connections: Joining Together in America's Fragmented Communities

"People work hard to create their moral selves, and Rebecca Allahyari shows us many of the ways they do it. Visions of Charity describes the emotional processes and the creative processes as well as the moral rhetoric involved. The power of Allahyari's account comes from an unusual comparison between two Sacramento charities aiding the homeless, one a branch of the Salvation Army, the other a left-leaning Catholic organization. Because she did extensive fieldwork at each, she offers a fine-grained portrait of 'moral selving' from the bottom up. What is more-her experience forced her to abandon her initial expectations about which group treated the homeless with greater dignity and respect."—James M. Jasper, author of The Art of Moral Protest: Culture, Biography, and Creativity in Social Movements