Ken Loach’s gritty drama, I, Daniel Blake, provokes reactions in everyone who watches it. We were invited to attend some screenings in our local communities hosted by the Unite/Community unions. The format is to get together to watch the film, have a cuppa and a biscuit and then share our reactions. The idea is catching on and we know that regular readers of our website/newsletter have been or might want to attend. If you do get an opportunity to watch the film then we want to know about your reactions. You can add to the posts on our Facebook page or e-mail them if you want us to add them in your name or even anonymously.
We have chosen to keep ours anonymous because they are personal views of people who operate our foodbank and we need to keep them separate from our neutral status. If you want to send your reactions we will post them either with or without your name. Most important is that we recommend that you watch it with others and have a debate. The more we bring the discussion into the open the more chance we have of making a difference.
“What I saw in I, Daniel Blake didn’t feel ‘new’ or ‘shocking’ to me. My job means that I’ve known that the injustice revealed in this story has been repeated in the lives of my neighbours again and again and that things have been getting harder. For lots of people in our discussions, this was their own recent personal experience and what was shared felt raw, honest and emotional. It was good that the film somehow validated our experiences and gave us a platform to talk together. And I was also encouraged by how many people wanted to take action after watching. Clearly the film challenges us to respond, to ask, what can we do to tackle injustice together?”
“I saw a standing ovation and people staying on to chat. I watched the unfolding of what has become a familiar story and felt ashamed that I am part of a system which trusted that adjustments would be made if accurate data were collated as evidence of why people used Foodbanks. As it is, the research fell on deaf ears whilst the use of red vouchers continues to compound the indignity for people struggling in poverty. I see a worsening situation with the impact of Universal Credit and would encourage local showings of ‘I Daniel Blake’ so that communities come together to campaign for the right to food for every person in their neighbourhood.”
“I see people being human. I see systems that don’t work and people trying to connect with them as best as they can. I found it hard to see anyone who would think that what they were doing was very good or very bad. They were getting on with their lives in circumstances they found themselves in. It made me angry and sad that with a little bit more understanding the very worst of outcomes could be avoided.”