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The construction of social housing has been in constant decline since the start of Emmanuel Macron’s five-year term. This results in often very difficult realities. People are forced to turn to associations for housing.
In a suburban district of Paris, a fifties pushes a door that is not quite his. He has been squatting in an abandoned house for two years. The comfort is rudimentary but he prefers that to being in the street. “In the street, you will deteriorate, you may fall into alcohol, get sick”, he said. He shares the house with two other people but lives with the fear of being evicted by the police or other squatters.
Every week, he goes to the Abbé Pierre Foundation to try to find accommodation. But the houses are missing. To increase the number of available accommodation, the association Toit à Moi has set up a system of mutual aid. Thousands of donors donate a small sum each month to collectively buy apartments that the association allocates to people in need. Mathieu thus benefited from this aid and was able to find a job.