Recently, Radio Wataha has a habit of broadcasting LIVE every Wednesday in the restaurant "U Ma". Not only is it possible to eat well there, but the scenery is adorned with beautiful paintings by Anna Róża Górowska. This time this Wednesday was no different, and our interlocutor was Aleksandra Czech, a person working at the Salvation Army Migration Center.
Alexandra Czech
Ola is a young woman who came to Oslo just 3 months ago. Previously, she lived in England for a long time, where she worked with homeless people, with people who fell victim to modern slavery and trafficking. She flew here to Norway to continue her mission. Aleksandra works with people who are homeless, but who are isolated from society, suffer from loneliness and simply need the help of another human being in the world. In an interview, he indicates a very big problem consisting in the vision of going abroad, where we go to work and earn money, and we do not always succeed. When we land on the street, the family is the last resort we grapple to and admit defeat.
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Problems of Poles in England
Aleksandra Czech, considering her many years of experience, supported by her stay in England and working with people from Poland who are homeless, told us what the truth about life on the street looks like. A very serious problem that leads to the increasing status of the homeless among Poles is the loss of job, which in turn often leads to drunkenness. The latter is also very often the reason for losing a passport. In England, the lack of a passport makes us simply nothing important. It often becomes the reason for e.g. keeping cheap labor or a large number of credit scams.
What was Ola's help in England like?
In England, Ola's help consisted of the so-called street working, i.e. walking on the street to look for the homeless. Additionally, observing many institutions that were suspected of employing people illegally, using cheap labor and saving these people. When Ola came across such a man, she talked to him and explained how his life can and should look like. She offered him a stay in the so-called Security House, where he could receive help with documents, language, help with mental problems, but also with the greatest pain which is spreading alcoholism.
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Norway and the missing structure
As mentioned above, Ola is only 3 months in Oslo, but she spent a total of three years in Norway. When asked what the help of the Salvation Army looks like in Norway, he replies that it is not as simple and arranged as in England. Norway does not yet have a structure according to which the help of people like Alexander would be systematized. How to build such a structure? As we say in Poland, "strength in a pile", which is why the Polish community, which has such a large number of people and grows every year, should want to help each other, because as Ola herself says, "willingness is not everything". This structure building is a mutual support network, which could consist in finding a suitable night shelter, assistance in obtaining documents, making a phone call by someone in Norwegian, but above all, something that costs nothing, and for such a person it is worth its weight in gold: a conversation.
Ola's vision
During the conversation, Łukasz asked Ola how it sees building the previously mentioned mutual support network in Norway. Well, Aleksandra wants to start with a joint event organized by the Salvation Army on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of independent Poland. It will take place on Monday, November 12, at 18:00 p.m. at the Migration Center. Aleksandra especially invites people who are in a difficult situation in... Oslo and they are Polish. This circumstance could be the first step towards building the missing structure of help for those in need among the Norwegian Polish community. Aleksandra also appeals that if there are people willing to help her cook something for the above-mentioned. party, she will be very grateful because, as she admits, she is bad at cooking :)
