Gender, precariousness and exclusion: experiences of women who use soup kitchens

Abstract

The objective of this study is to describe and analyze how the situations of exclusion identified by women users and workers of health care services for food −“soup kitchens”− in the city of Barcelona −Catalonia, Spain− influence their lives, in general, and their eating practices, in particular. The fieldwork was carried out in two public soup kitchens in the city of Barcelona, in 2018. The narratives refer to a sum of situations of exclusion in their daily visits to these soup kitchens, such as discrimination related to social class, gender, age and origin −if foreign−. In conclusion, we established relationships between the contexts of food consumption in soup kitchens and their effects on eating practices of women who use the services offered by these assistencial centers. With special attention we analyze exclusion situations in these contexts that consequently affect the eating act.