Ediția #5

By George Gurescu 

"I have nothing against you, I support you, but not publicly. "

That's one of the phrases that many of the organizations heard when they asked for help. From companies, from public institutions, from individual donors. 

In this edition of the Chronicles, we talk to those who received this reply from those who could have been such a vital helping hand. They are organizations that fight for the rights of the homeless, equality and respect of LGBTQIA+ people or children from Roma families. 

We asked them how they manage to fulfill their mission and what support they receive from the communities. The first breath comes from foreign financiers, who most of the time in the last 30 years, were the only ones who believed in the mission and importance of the work of organizations.  

"Paradoxically, human rights, the ones we are talking about, do not fall into the top priorities of those who support the NGO environment (sponsors, partners). I don't know why the limitation of rights and freedoms is seen as a secondary topic, although it leads to dramatic situations many times," says Cristina Săracu, an LGBTQIA+ activist with 20 years of experience.  

It's a tough fight, but small wins are now piling up. Marian Ursan, executive director of the Carousel, believes that there is a change, and people are starting to open up to such causes as well.

But the problems are often beyond the power of an NGO. Organisations fighting for the right to education and equality for disadvantaged Roma children see that change can come through school, but what do you do when the system that is supposed to protect you is not right next to you? "The schools, the headmistresses, the teachers, when they hear that the children from Pirita are going to come, they start to invoke all kinds of imaginary problems: that the other parents will take their children to take them somewhere else, that the other children from Pirita will get problems, they will come with lice, with aggressive behaviors. Of course there is this possibility, but this is how their registration is postponed and it cannot be done naturally", says Claudia Costea, founder of Pirita Children from Baia Mare.

The same conclusion can be drawn from the interview with the Common Front for the Right to Housing, where we find out why it means to depend on the state when you need a social housing: "A lady waiting for social housing on Prelungirea Ghencea was pregnant when she first filed the file. This year, her child finishes high school and she still hasn't got the home. Unfortunately, it's not a singular story." We need a safety net for the most vulnerable among us, but the state still does not keep this net stretched. 

We also go to Botosani, where a foundation wants access to newborn care to no longer depend on their parents' money or the city where they live, and we look at how systemic poverty decides our future at the most important moments in someone's life. 

The work of these organizations is carried out on too many fronts, but none of the people of this edition are timorous or intimidated by the weight of the mission and the struggles they are fighting. The victories they have help them move forward, but they need us to know that they are not alone.