Marcus Rashford praised for passionate interview about the “stigma” of child poverty

Marcus Rashford has spoken passionately about the effects of child poverty in an interview on Good Morning Britain.

The footballer spoke about launching a taskforce to battle the issue. "We’re building a task force, it’s just a number of large brands coming together, that all have the same aspirations, and goals. That’s the next step in what we’re trying to do… really maximise the help we can give to people." Speaking to Piers Morgan and Susannah Reid, Rashford said that he was driven “to help as much as I can.” https://twitter.com/GMB/status/1305412623639478273 Earlier this summer, the Manchester United star was credited with forcing a government U-turn on free school meals after he wrote an open letter to MPs. “Especially if you are young, and you're not eating you just have no energy, you don't feel comfortable going to school,” Rashford told GMB. “And most of the ones that aren’t eating, they’re just sleeping at school because they’re physically drained.” “It can be the beginning of homelessness, the beginning of crime. It just starts so many pathways that you don’t want children to go to.” Susannah Reid also asked Rashford about the reaction he has recieved from families helped by his campaign. "They’re just really happy and grateful. They always express their happiness to me. They actually said that I don’t understand how much it’s helped them, which is kind of true, because my mum got that help when I was younger." “It just drives me more to help as much as I can.” https://twitter.com/GMB/status/1305426234969595908 Rashford said he wanted to break the “stigma” of asking for help, following a Tweet from MP Kevin Hollinrake who said that is was "a parents job to feed their children".

Where they can, it’s a parents job to feed their children

— Kevin Hollinrake MP (@kevinhollinrake) September 6, 2020

“I always been brought up, that if you need help, and someone is in a position to help you should feel comfortable to ask them. We need people to ask for help, in order to get them the help that they need.” “I want to kill the stigma around asking for help because it’s a positive thing.” Rashford was widely praised for his comments on social media. https://twitter.com/savechildrenuk/status/1305456205423357952 https://twitter.com/UnitedSheStands/status/1305431813221945344  

The People's Leader of the Opposition.

— Sooz Kempner (@SoozUK) September 14, 2020

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