Hunger King: Fast Food chain art exhibit handing out cash to the underprivileged

Via Vice News.com:

link

Located in the center of Budapest’s commercial shopping district is a new pop-up art installation, but you might not notice it right away. Finnish artist Jani Leinonen has built a replica of a fast food chain restaurant called “Hunger King,” but instead of serving burgers and fries, it is giving out boxes filled with cash to homeless people waiting in line outside.

The piece is meant to highlight Hungary’s inequality issue, and is also in response to a 2013 law that criminalizes homeless people sleeping outside, imposing fines and possible jail time.

Hunger King has two lines outside, one marked for poor people and the other, with a red carpet, marked for the rich. The first 50 people in the “poor” line who enter the installation receive a burger box containing 3,400 forints (around $15). This is roughly equivalent to Hungary’s daily minimum wage.

This is absolutely brilliant. Even as a social experiment or an "art" exhibit or whatever you want to call it, I think this is great. I doubt it will have much of an impact on the social pecking order, but if it makes even one rich person think, then why not? In the meantime, this project is doing a valuable service by providing resources for the less fortunate while making a statement in doing so.

I'm guessing we'll get the neo-liberals in here any minute to tell us all why this is terrible and how this sort of thing creates dependency and blah blah blah. Whatever. With the recent rise in anti-homeless laws and actions being taken in large metropolitan centers around the world, something needs to be done and said, and this is a step in the right direction.

a reply to: DeadSeraph

You know this brought up an interesting question I would seriously ask the fast food CEO's in America in General.

Why do you not support charity to the folks that you serve...only the next rung up? The worst off really are the major supporters of these chains, everyone may like to indulge but few view it as cheaper than groceries....you need a stove first and everything with it to prepare most real whole foods......

I guess what I' m really getting at, soup kitchens and good will just Isn't seeing the same flow they did in a good economy..folk are not only losing their homes but starving to death before our eyes.

The big corporations that reaped such a reward when the going was clear, have a very solid karmic need to support and feed the folk they get rich off....charity is a right off...and a few cottages that feed in the most money making places is just simple good will, I'm addressing the big clown in town specifically....a few shelters etc is not a like response to the continued support. Pull up yer stuff!

Dude, I'm surprised this brought out such a response, thank you for bringing it up.

This may not have happened where these chains regularly feed but it should be...

Much happiness to you and yours,

Cheers

P.s. His sign is rich, and is the answer.....if wealthy folks paid the full price and the poorest got fed the same....it's better than a tip and would certainly catch on in the communities I live near.