Dhe entrance sign for Wythenshawe will soon be given a new addition. So far, there has been a sheet under the board on the outskirts of the district in the south of Manchester that reads: “Rashford 1 – Boris 0.” However, the score has changed for a few days: “Rashford 2 – Boris 0.”
Rashford is Marcus Rashford, Manchester United forward. The 23-year-old soccer star is a hero in Wythenshawe, where he grew up. Because he has been fighting tirelessly for years to ensure that something changes in this social hotspot, where unemployment and crime rates are high.
Boris is Boris Johnson, a conservative British Prime Minister who doesn’t exactly stand for social politics – and certainly not for strengthening the public sector. However, Rashford never tires of demanding more commitment from the government for the poor – and has achieved successes that hardly anyone would have thought possible.
Pedestrians pass a graffiti showing Marcus Rashford in Manchester
Source: AFP
The public pressure that Rashord generates through his social networks has forced the government to give in for the second time – with consequences not only for Wythenshawe, but for the whole of the United Kingdom.
Second “U-Turn”
As early as the summer, he demanded that children be provided with free school meals during the summer holidays. This was no longer issued because of the school closings imposed by the government due to the corona pandemic. However, because of the protests that followed Rashford’s campaign, she relented. The government had food vouchers distributed to the poor families – and apparently thought that this was the end of the unfortunate matter.
But that was wrong in Downing Street in Rashford. The program must also apply to the autumn and Christmas holidays, the footballer now demanded – and many clubs, companies and politicians joined in. The result was that Tory MPs felt the resentment of the local population.
The government then made the second “U-Turn”, as the Guardian wrote. Labor Minister Thérèse Coffey announced on Sunday that a further 244 million euros will be made available in order to be able to offer school lunches during the winter, Easter and the coming summer holidays. In addition, there will be aid payments of almost 190 million euros, which the local authorities will distribute to families in need in the form of vouchers. Families in need are used to buy food or cover heating costs.
Incidentally, Rashford found out about this news a day earlier. On Saturday, immediately after winning 3-1 at Everton with Manchester United, he received a call from Boris Johnson. “I had a good chat with the Prime Minister,” he wrote on Twitter and Facebook. “I applaud the steps that are now being taken to combat child poverty. They are positive and should be recognized. They will improve the lives of nearly 1.7 million children in the next twelve months. ”At the same time, he thanked everyone who helped to keep up the pressure on the government:“ I am so proud of us. ”
Rashford’s commitment, for which he was recently recognized by the Queen, stems from an awareness that developed in his youth – when he himself was dependent on the free school lunch. “I don’t want a child to have to go through what I’ve been through and no parent has to go through what my mother has experienced,” he said of the motivation behind his efforts. “I experienced first hand what hunger can lead to. Therefore: enough is enough. “
Rashford knows poverty. His mother, a supermarket cashier, raised him and his four siblings alone and with little money. Purchases had to be made in cheap stores. “We got seven yogurts for a week. So you could only eat one a day, ”Rashford said in an interview. “It’s crazy that that’s still the case. It’s 2020. And I just think that shouldn’t happen anymore. “
So he went about collecting donations himself. Together with his mother, he organized a gift campaign for the homeless even before Corona. When games in the Premier League were suspended during the Corona crisis, he gave virtual sports courses for children and auctioned his football boots for a social cause. At the same time, the national player, whose annual income is estimated at around ten million euros, supports a youth center in Wythenshawe.
His commitment has earned him a lot of recognition. “I don’t know if I can find suitable words. But what got Marcus rolling is absolutely incredible. It’s just good, ”said Jürgen Klopp. Nevertheless, it is “shameful”, so the coach of Liverpool FC, that “a boy from a humble background” has to act for those politically responsible.
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