NOTHELFER IN NOT

At the center of the scenic collage “Nothelfer in Not” are conversations.
A total of over 250 pages of material were created in interviews with people affected by poverty and their helpers. Both groups share similar insights: The system of help in this country is not helpful for either the one or the other.
The gap between rich and poor is widening and is putting society to the test. It increases discrimination at all levels, undermines democracy and exacerbates the global climate crisis.
The number of people that our current emergency helpers – social workers, debt counselors, youth welfare workers, etc. – have to look after is increasing at an alarming rate. In order to make the complex structures between the so-called clients and their helpers visible, we conducted multimedia research in the precarious circles of the region. The results are fragmentary and yet lead to surprising insights and ideas. With protest, shock and provocation, but also with imagination, lightness, music and humor, the lively production “Nothelfer in Not” reflects an explosive situation that seems hopeless.
The project puts its finger in the open wound of current social work, which is based on the assumption that all people have the freedom to act. However, such freedom to act requires a certain degree of ability to act. However, many people in emergency situations have lost this ability.