"what really wears homeless people out is time. Always waiting, always being on the go…" - "hard to talk about, but when I did start to talk to others I felt no different from them and I wasn’t embarrassed" - "my children inheriting my poverty" - "days without bread are the longest days" - "every agency wanting the same papers. And more photocopies every time" - "being paid regularly, but my debts still mounting up anyway" - "waking up in bad housing conditions which saps the will to do anything" - "constant pressure. It wears you down. Nobody prepared me for living in such harsh conditions" - "stealing our future by keeping us out of touch with the knowledge-based society" - "working full-time, but … not earning enough to make a decent living" - "being undocumented, so for you I don’t exist" - "being old and living alone. I am sick. I am afraid of loneliness … I cry a lot but try to look calm and collected when I go out."

Resources for the media

  • The EY 2010 NGO Coalition Common Messages for the Outcome of 2010 English - French
  • The EY 2010 NGO Coalition Open letter to the Ministers for Social Affairs English - French
  • 2010 European year Closing conference…

Read the article here

Documents related to the closing of the year:

2010 NGO Coalition’s statement on the 2010 Year

Council Declaration on The European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion: Working together to fight poverty in 2010 and beyond

EAPN’s final Declaration on the European Year combating poverty and social exclusion: English - French - Spanish

For further information, contact:

Nellie Epinat, EAPN’s Communications & Press Officer Nellie.epinat eapn.eu or team eapn.eu

Leticia Gomez Sanchez, EAPN’s Communications Assistant leticia.gomez eapn.eu

tel. +32 2 226 58 50 - fax. +32 2 226 58 69

Voices of People experiencing Poverty
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