EU - homeless people

THE SECOND CITY

ZDf-Frontal (2022)

There is a second city in the capital, Berlin, where thousands of people live. But nobody wants to talk to them, nobody talks about this city, which is nevertheless constantly growing. It is the German capital of the homeless, where people live under bridges, on park benches or in tents. An estimated half of them come from other EU countries, mainly from Eastern Europe. Most of them move from emergency shelter to emergency shelter and are only on the streets during the day. Many are looking for a new job every day so that they don’t have to beg. The money they earn is not enough for permanent accommodation in a city like Berlin. A vicious circle from which very few manage to break out. Does it make sense to grant these homeless people social benefits, even a guaranteed roof over their heads, with no strings attached? Poverty, the working class and the prospects of a better life for people who live at the bottom.

Author: Cornelia Liedke, Kersten Schüßler
camera: Julia Senkler, Ulf Behrens
editing: Rainer Speidel
editor: Christian Rohde (ZDF)