Social stigma a challenge in helping rural poor

from The Chronicle Herald

By JOSH VISSER

Spotting poverty in a Canadian city is easy: You never have to look far to spot a homeless person sitting on the street shaking a coffee cup.

But poverty also exists in rural Nova Scotia and it’s on the rise, says Diane Swinemar.

Ms. Swinemar is the executive director of Feed Nova Scotia, the organization that funds and runs 150 shelters, food banks and soup kitchens across the province.

She spoke to The Chronicle-Herald while waiting to board a plane to Ottawa for a Tuesday-night speech to the Senate on rural poverty.

Ms. Swinemar said there are several challenges that are unique in dealing with poverty in rural areas.

"In outlying areas, like Canso or Louisburg, it is really costly to make weekly deliveries," Ms. Swinemar said. "And there are no local resources to call on."

Another serious problem for food banks is that the social stigma of poverty is amplified in a small rural community.

"You know that song ‘Where everyone knows your name’? Well, that’s not so funny in rural Nova Scotia when you have to use a food bank," she said. "The question is: Are people going without (food) because they don’t want to be identified?"

Ms. Swinemar was to represent the Canadian Association of Food Banks when she went before the Senate, including a presentation of an association study showing that rural poverty is increasing.

One reason she gave for this trend is that rural populations are aging, as many young people move to places such as Alberta to find work. She pointed out that there has been an increase in the number of people using soup kitchens in rural Nova Scotia but decreases at the food banks.

Some seniors "can’t prepare meals for themselves, so they need to go to the soup kitchen," Ms. Swinemar said.