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It is noon and drizzle in the air. Two factors that lead to few people inside the local grocery store in Gulskogen in Drammen.
Ann-Kristin Ellinor Hagen (54) just parked her electric scooter in the disabled parking lot outside. When you leave this early, you are hopeful that the items you need are not out of stock.
But he barely walks through the door, before you see the disappointment in his eyes. Already on the vegetable counter, the empty box lights up towards her, where the cheapest carrots should have been.
– When here it is completely empty, I feel that it is being tied. Even then I have a problem, says the 54-year-old on TV 2.
Skipped dinner for the kids
Throughout her life, Ann-Kristin and her five children have had little to do. It got even worse after they performed it in 2007.
He had complications after receiving knee replacement on both knees. Then a life of constant pain began and it became impossible for her to work.
After a breakout the following year, the tight economy went from bad to worse.
CHEAPER: Ann-Kristin always goes for low-priced products, but during the crown crisis, these products have often been empty. Photo: Petter Sørum Johansen / TV 2
– Fortunately, my children have never been very demanding, they have been happy with little. But I don’t have numbers on how many times I’ve been to dinner myself, so they should have enough, she says, and her eyes sparkle.
Call
Last Saturday, TV 2 wrote about another family in Drammen, where the 15-year-old is about to lose her friends because she has to say no every time they want her to join something. She can’t pay.
She cannot afford Christmas gifts for her daughter (15): – Cries in the shower, because later she thinks that no one can hear her
The case has created an enormous commitment both from the many who want to contribute, and from other families in the country who are in the same situation. Almost all have in common that they do not dare to stand out as poor, because it is very stigmatizing.
They prefer to keep their mouths shut and try to cover up the problem, rather than admit poverty.
But Ann-Kristin refuses to be quiet.
He thinks that it is difficult to do something about the problem of poverty if no one puts a face on it.
– I have always been open and honest with children, throughout their upbringing. They have known that we have had bad advice and have had to deal with it. And I’m not afraid that others will find out, says the 54-year-old who knows that there are many who feel so bad and much worse than them.
She believes that we have to do something to get rid of the embarrassment of having bad advice.
– It’s not embarrassing, it’s just a reality. I have no problem saying openly that I am poor, that does not make me a worse person than you for that, says Ann-Kristin in a clear and distinct voice.
– Concerned about progress
Ann-Kristin and her family have received help from the Salvation Army on several occasions. The organization reports a sharp increase in the number of families seeking help from them.
– 80 percent of our locations nationwide reported higher demand in November, primarily after lunch. While Oslo reports that the number of families with children asking for help has doubled. We are concerned about the large influx, says communications manager Geir Smith-Solevåg at the Salvation Army on TV 2.
CONCERNED: The Salvation Army’s Communications Chief Geir Smith-Solevåg is concerned that more and more people are fighting and asking for help. Photo: Salvation Army
Smith-Solevåg says that to an even greater degree they now notice that it is everyone who comes and asks for help. People who thought they had a secure job and had never been in a situation before where they had to ask for help now turn to aid organizations.
– What do you think of the constant increase in the number of people who need help?
– Each family, which sees itself having to ask for help, is a crisis in itself. For them, it is perhaps life’s greatest defeat and we must respect it and try to alleviate it as best we can, says Smith-Solevåg.
Double crisis
He says it is impressive to see the double crisis that many of these families are now describing.
– Both in practical terms, with not having money for dinner or a new nursery outfit, but also with the burden of perhaps for the first time having to ask for help to make ends meet.
– Many want to help those who struggle the most. What can everyone do?
– This Christmas, it is especially important that we dare to be a nuisance. If we think someone is struggling, we should dare to ask if they need help. If this pandemic has shown us anything, it is that the world can change rapidly. Therefore, we must dare to take care of each other, be receptive to if there is someone who needs what you have to offer, says Smith-Solevåg.
– Politicians must wake up
Secretary General Adelheid Firing Hvambsal from the Church City Mission says politicians now have to wake up and go out into the country to rid themselves of systematic poverty.
YOU MUST REACT: Secretary General Adelheid firing Hvambsal at Church City Mission says politicians now have to react to do something about the problem of poverty. Photo: Truls Aagedal / TV 2
The Church City Mission also notes a sharp increase in the number of families requesting assistance now, compared to previous years.
– It is not the case that gifts and food baskets for Christmas solve this problem. It alleviates here and now, but it does not solve the extreme poverty we have among more than 100,000 children and their families in this country, says Hvambsal.
They see that the corona pandemic has taken the situation from bad to worse for the poorest. And you have to do something, and fast.
– One of the measures that we have registered for the state budget this year is that the child benefit must be increased for all children from 0 to 18 years old. It is one of the most important measures we can take in the future to reduce poverty in families with children, he says.
Increase child benefits for the poorest
On Thursday evening, the program committee of the Liberal Party put forward a proposal to increase the child benefit to about NOK 20,000, but tax it to give the most to the families who need it most.
– The proposal ensures that low-income families get more than they get today. The bottom of the income scale will be able to get between 7,000 and 8,000 crowns more than today, says Sondre Hansmark on the Liberal Party’s program committee.
Hansmark says he believes that it is not right for all families with children, regardless of income, to receive the same in child benefits.
– If you have many millions of income, today you enjoy child benefit as much as a poor family. Rather, we must give more to those who need it most. I’m also absolutely sure that those at the top of their income don’t need this money as much as everyone else, he says.
Permanent changes after the crown
Twenty-five percent of all households have been affected at one point or another by the crown crisis through layoffs, layoffs, or loss of business income, a Sifo report shows.
– It is obvious that the crown crisis has caused many to face financial challenges, which will take a long time to rectify. And some may never be able to get back on track, says Sifo researcher Christian Poppe, who believes it will lead to even bigger differences in the long run.
Sifo has no figures showing anything about the trend after June.
– But in the data material we see the contours of the long-term effects for vulnerable groups. This applies in particular to employees who before the crisis had precarious employment contracts. Additionally, we see many households clearly struggling with the economy in the form of debt and payment problems, the accumulation of credit card debt, and the need to borrow money for food and other necessary expenses. These are injuries that can be difficult to repair, Poppe says.
