dimanche, janvier 14, 2007
Sans Domicile Fixe
A less-celebrated side of Paris:
Homelessness is an aspect of Paris that doesn't make it onto any postcards, but it is a very real problem especially in winter. It is not unusual to see people sleeping in the metro or on street corners, or interstingly, in tents scattered around the city, given out to the homeless by various organisations. At the moment, in a protest/raising awareness thing, the SDF's (sans domicile fixe = without permanent address) as well as other people who want to get involved, have created a bit of a tent embassy to try to raise the profile of the problem and to get the government to do something about it. The tents went up before Christmas, and they have said that they're not budging until the government finds them a more permanent solution. They are arguing that housing is as fundamental a human right as education or medical care, and that it should therefore be the duty of the government to provide.
As an aside, the canal that these tents are alongside is the canal where Amelie went to skim stones in the movie!
Homelessness is an aspect of Paris that doesn't make it onto any postcards, but it is a very real problem especially in winter. It is not unusual to see people sleeping in the metro or on street corners, or interstingly, in tents scattered around the city, given out to the homeless by various organisations. At the moment, in a protest/raising awareness thing, the SDF's (sans domicile fixe = without permanent address) as well as other people who want to get involved, have created a bit of a tent embassy to try to raise the profile of the problem and to get the government to do something about it. The tents went up before Christmas, and they have said that they're not budging until the government finds them a more permanent solution. They are arguing that housing is as fundamental a human right as education or medical care, and that it should therefore be the duty of the government to provide.
As an aside, the canal that these tents are alongside is the canal where Amelie went to skim stones in the movie!
# posted by Jenny @ 12:24 
