Founder of the Christian aid organization “Die Arche”, Bernd Siggelkow, has criticized the political response to child poverty in Germany. “For 30 years, we have been fighting child poverty at Die Arche, only to stumble from one crisis to the next” he told the Rheinische Post.
“We are busy dealing with the crisis and trying to plug the holes” Siggelkow said, adding, “People affected by poverty have essentially become the social underclass.”
Looking ahead to the election, he noted, “It is alarming that the silence of the lambs prevails on the topic of child poverty, while asylum policy is being used as a campaign issue and the connection between the two is not being recognized. It cannot be that we let people into the country and fail to uphold the promise of providing them with security and a future.”
Siggelkow also criticized the state’s handling of refugee integration, saying, “We at Die Arche have seen a growing number of refugees, including parents who are sent to us for a German course because the state is overwhelmed. Small children are coming to our institutions because they cannot get a kindergarten spot. This is perpetuating an incredible inequality of opportunities. As a social institution, we are having to clean up the mess that is not being thought through politically.