Argentines seek soup kitchens, barter markets amid crisis
Argentines seek soup kitchens, barter markets amid crisis
Almudena Calatrava, Associated Press
Updated 2:37 am CDT, Monday, September 10, 2018
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Men wait outside the metal-grill door of a soup kitchen in a slum, hoping to get a small serving of beef and mashed potatoes. At a barter market on the capital's outskirts, a woman tries to persuade another to exchange for her granddaughters' tiny shoes.
Argentines are struggling in crisis in what was once one of the world's most prosperous nations. Consumer prices are soaring, unemployment is high and the Argentine peso has plunged, bringing back haunting memories of the country's economic meltdown in 2001 that pushed millions into poverty.
A growing number of people arrive at the "Happy Kids" soup kitchen in the Villa 1-11-14 shantytown, where servers try to stretch out steaming pots of stew because many more than expected are lining up for food.
"The city government gives us money for 440 rations a day, but we're being forced to prepare smaller portions so that we can cover 600 rations," said Cintia Garcia, who runs the soup kitchen.
More:
https://www.chron.com/news/world/article/Argentines-seek-soup-kitchens-barter-markets-13216908.php
LBN:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142154326
