Quakers urged to speak out
Church Action on Poverty urges people to speak out against prejudice
Quakers have been urged to speak out against prejudices that lead to poor people being blamed for their own poverty. Quaker Social Action (QSA) has backed a call by Church Action on Poverty (CAP) to take a stand against stereotypes that ignore the ‘real barriers’ faced by benefit recipients, homeless people and low-paid workers.
CAP spoke out on the issue at the beginning of Poverty and Homelessness Action Week, which runs from 28 January to 5 February. The week will be marked by over 100 events nationwide, including discussions, church services and demonstrations.
QSA’s director, Judith Moran, told the Friend that ‘these are very worrying times’ in terms of attitudes towards poverty. ‘The debate has got very distorted,’ she said. ‘There’s a lot of simplistic argument going on in the media’.
She said that tax evasion receives ‘very little media attention’ compared to benefit fraud, although it is a bigger problem in financial terms. She urged politicians to move away from ‘demonisation’. Instead, she argued, they should attempt to create jobs and ‘secure environments for people to flourish in.’
The theme for the Action Week is ‘breaking barriers’. CAP’s Liam Purcell told the Friend that the theme is about drawing attention to structures that keep poverty in place. He emphasised that the issue was not solely about benefit recipients. ‘Low pay causes people to be trapped [in poverty] even when they work very hard,’ he said.
QSA will mark the Week with an event on Saturday to promote their new lodgings scheme. The project matches single homeless people with families or individuals who can rent them a room. The first person to be housed through the scheme has moved into a new room this week.
QSA is also keen to draw attention to ‘hidden homelessness’. They say that there is little attention given to people who are ‘sofa surfing’ or unable to move out of a family home despite problematic or abusive relationships.
Poverty and Homelessness Action Week is organised by CAP, Housing Justice and Scottish Churches Housing Action. Sponsors include the Quaker Housing Trust.
Liam Purcell said that while the groups involved in the Week are ‘mostly Christian’, they are happy to work alongside others. ‘Jesus came to break down barriers,’ he said. ‘His mission was to cross those boundaries and those barriers that society sets up. That’s what we want people to be inspired by.’
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