Social Evils | findings

The voices of unheard groups

Topic | Social Inclusion
Researcher | Chris Creegan

We ran workshops with groups of hard to reach people recruited through a range of charities. In these workshops the meaning of the term 'social evil' was fiercely debated. Many of our workshop participants had experience of these social evils. People tended to focus most on social problems, with few absolute 'rights' or 'wrongs' emerging from our discussions.

 

  1. Important neighbourly and family relationships have broken down and moral values have declined
  2. Immigrant workers are good for the economy but immigration can result in unfair treatment of UK citizens
  3. People feel trapped by poverty
  4. Drug and alcohol use sometimes welcomed as an 'escape', but link to poverty, family breakdown, crime and violence indentified
  5. Government and politicians are responsible for tackling social evils, but the individual also has an important role to play
Important neighbourly and family relationships have broken down and moral values have declined

A change in family and community was percieved, with lone parents and working parents having less time to nurture the family and people no longer looking out for their neighbours. Participants described feeling unloved and uncared for and the chaotic, frightening world outside their front door.

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Immigrant workers are good for the economy but immigration can result in unfair treatment of UK citizens

Whilst recognising the economic benefits of immigrant workers, participants thought that refugees and asylum seekers were treated better than UK citizens. Access to housing was given as an example of this. People felt there was a lack of control over who was coming into the country, with criminals and even terrorists being allowed in.

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People feel trapped by poverty

Participants had experience of poverty and regardless of age, said they felt held back by it. Poverty was viewed as curtailing aspirations and limiting opportunities. The gap between rich and poor was also seen as widening.

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Drug and alcohol use sometimes welcomed as an 'escape', but link to poverty, family breakdown, crime and violence indentified

Drugs and alcohol were described as being problematic when used to excess, but not inherently evil. For some participants, drugs and alcohol represented a welcome, if temporary, escape from their problems. Participants of all ages had experience of the misuse of drugs and alcohol, which was closely related to their experiences of family breakdown, poverty, crime and violence.

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Government and politicians are responsible for tackling social evils, but the individual also has an important role to play

When discussing the roles of other people in the fight against social evil, participants identified the Government and politicians as key players. People thought the media should glamorise celebrity less, businesses contribute to local communities and the church help put 'moral fibre' back into society. Alongside institutional action, individual action was also viewed as having an integral part to play in tackling social evil.

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