- ATD Fourth World

My name is Marc Couillard and I am an ATD Fourth World Movement activist.
I took part in the Fourth World University programme and later in the Fourth World Partnership programme. 
For us activists, this Fourth World Partnership programme proved difficult because relations between families from our social milieu, that is to say, very poor families, and professionals are often strained.
We were asked to enter into dialogue with professionals from the health care sector, the police, the legal system, experts on education, social workers and youth counsellors. Our aim was to try and improve relations with them.
By taking part in this programme, we, the activists, involved families from our own social environment and it was for that reason that we could not afford to fail at this attempt at mutual development.

We can all think of clichés to describe our experiences. I personally thought I would find it impossible to talk about and consider certain issues with the police or legal experts. But as fate would have it, we found ourselves in the same working group!
At the outset we had to think about the fixed impressions we have of one another. We have to tackle this issue if we want to work together.
For example, people who are very poor are suspicious of anyone who intervenes in our life and takes decisions in our stead.
The professionals, meanwhile, often fear our reactions, which they find aggressive.

We realised that according to our respective social background or profession we do not share the same logical basis determining how we think and act.
For example, one approach used by the professionals is to think of us as 'cases', as problems to be resolved. This is the approach of problematisation.
What is more, they have to obtain results quickly to report back to their institutions. That is the argument of efficiency.
The activists were able to raise awareness of how poor people think. For example, one of their approaches is centred around the universality of the individual, because an individual is not just a housing, money or health problem.
And on the other hand, we need time to rebuild our confidence in ourselves and in others, and the concept of 'taking time' flies in the face of the efficiency and profitability demanded of professionals.

One widespread notion among those who do not experience poverty for themselves is that what poor people need more than anything is the means to survive, i.e. to eat, drink, sleep and so forth.
By describing our experiences and those of family and friends, we were able to explain and make clear that we also have cultural and spiritual needs. We need to talk to other people, to reflect on our own lives and on life in general. We need to feel a sense of community, not purely with those experiencing similar difficulties to our own. 
The importance of these cultural needs was new to these professionals and could well alter the way they behave towards poor people.

Finally, one additional point I would like to highlight is that in order to take action against poverty, you really have to know what it is like to experience it. In the Fourth World University and Fourth World Partnership programmes, we, the activists have been able share our experiences of poverty from the inside.
For example, would you know that the simple act of opening their door can constitute a risk for a poverty-stricken family?
Can you understand that going to school can pose a risk to our children? We are always hearing how school represents an opportunity, but for very poor families it can be risky, for there is a danger that the child will be looked down on and rejected. And then there is the risk to the parents that their poverty will be exposed publicly.

In conclusion, if we are to combat destitution we believe it is imperative to draw on the knowledge and experience of poor people themselves. But we have to do more than that.
It is not simply a matter of making the poor talk about their lives.
They have to be given the means to change their own situation themselves and participate with others in the progress made by our society.
Throughout these two programmes, we were given these resources, both in terms of time and of people who believed in us. 
I hope this will inspire others to continue on the path to the crossroads of knowledge with people suffering great hardship. For it is well worth it.