'Begging boomboxes' are bringing attention to poverty in the Netherlands
Despite economic growth worldwide, income inequality persists. In many big cities around the world, however, conversations about comprehensive solutions simply aren't happening.
Instead of taking action to alleviate poverty, cities like Utrecht in the Netherlands have taken overly simplistic measures, like implementing bans on panhandling. But one local artist is drawing attention to the systemic problem through interesting means: boomboxes.
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Dutch visual artist Dries Verhoeven's new project, Songs for Thomas Piketty, features "begging boomboxes" placed strategically throughout the Utrecht city center. Each boombox has a cup or plate on top of it, and plays a song about unity. Then it plays a recording of someone asking passersby for spare change -- exactly what the city's homeless can't do.
"Despite the fact that poverty grows, public space becomes sterile."
"Homeless people are discouraged to hang around in the city center -- for example, benches are designed in a way that you cannot sleep on them," Verhoeven told Mashable. "Despite the fact that poverty grows, public space becomes sterile."
His project is named after French economist Thomas Pikkety, whose works revolves around income inequality and distribution. Pikkety believes the gap between the rich and poor will only increase in the coming decades, unless the world takes action.
The boomboxes are unique because they shed light on poverty through inanimate objects, rather than those who live in poverty themselves. Verhoeven's project shows that most people "would rather transfer money to a trustworthy organization than give it to just any beggar we encounter," reflecting our "institutionalized compassion," he said.
But he stresses that Songs for Thomas Piketty is only effective as a temporary installation.
"I hope to deactivate the 'autopilot' of passersby. If we show it for a long time, people might tune it out the same way they tune out homelessness. I want to leave before that happens," he said.
Failure to address poverty is a global problem. Instead of working to close the gap between the rich and the poor, poverty and homelessness are being criminalized around the world. Panhandling has been banned in many Australian states, U.S. cities and Norway; anti-homeless spikes have been erected in cities like London; and the poor have been pushed out of their communities across the globe for the sake of commerce and tourism.
Through Songs for Thomas Piketty, Verhoeven hopes to raise the question, "Do we need the poor to be reminded of poverty?"
The project will be on display every weekend in Utrecht until June 5, when they will move to Amsterdam and Belgium. If you want to see them for yourself, the locations are updated every weekend online.
[H/T Fast Company]
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Topics Social Good
