The financial crisis in Spain began in 2008 and ever since then, it has been on the news headline everyday. The crisis is not only economic but also has social and political impact. And it is always the common man that suffers from the repercussions- uncertain pension scheme, increased unemployment rate, decline in wages and lowered health and education standards.
The media and politicians often portray the crisis in the language of facts and figures- the amount of the public debt, the number of people marching the streets, the cuts to public spending, the number of jobs lost etc. However, behind these numbers lie different stories of human experiences and needs.
Frustrated by the situation, the Spanish public has been roused to voice their concerns. Taking inspiration from the recent Arab Spring, many people started meeting in city squares to discuss the situation. This soon developed into large gatherings of people in local squares, with Plaza del Sol in Madrid being the epicentre of the 15th of May Movement (also known as 15M). This social movement, commonly referred to as the ‘Indignados’, drew people from different social backgrounds with the sole intention to take charge of the country’s social, economic and political changes at this still embryonic stage of the crisis.
Brandy Osborne billoborad alog N-V national road on the outskirts of Trujillo town in Extremadura.
Carmen Gil, unemployed, eats lunch a a government canteen in Barcelona where meals are provided for those in need. She squats in a flat with her daughter and granddaughter where they all live with €426 monthly income support from the government.
Rubbish piles up along a street following a strike of garbage collectors to fight plans by Jerez de la Frontera local government to reduce the workforce.
Esteban Capa, unemployed and evicted from his home for not being able to pay his mortgage instalments, camps with others outside Bankia's bank offices in Madrid during a protest.
Sings cover the entrance of the Hotel Madrid in Madrid where some 'Indignados' protestors have occupied the empty hotel to be used for social purposes.
The Lascano family live on a rented room in a flat in Barbera del Valles outside Barcelona where they moved after being evicted for their flat. "We had a debt of 250.000€ with the bank. On the morning of July 21st, 2011 I left home and when I came in the evening it wasn’t my house anymore. They took it in lieu of payment."
Classroom of the closed rural school of Villar de la Encina village in Cuenca. The school had to closed due to cuts in the education budget.
Ana Barnardos, teacher and activist for a group fighting for quality public education, poses for a picture with the group t-shirt at the school where she works in Madrid.
Departure Hall of Burgos Airport after it closed due to lack of passengers. In 2013 only 19000 passengers used the infrastrucutre.
Emilio Linares, unemployed, dresses as a cartoon to pose for pictures with tourist for a fee.
Un finished blocks of flats in the dormitory town of Valdeluz in Guadalajar near Madrid.
Raúl Sanchez, unemployed, collects water for drinking and cooking from a street fountain outside la Corrala Utopía, a block of flats squatted by 36 families in Sevilla.
Unhabited residential block of flats in Seseña, a dormitory town in Toledo near Madrid. Seseña is one of the biggest private residential projects in Spain that was supposed to house up tp 50.000 people. The project went bankrupt in 2008 anf is currently unfinished.
Susan Martin, who is a nurse in La Princesa public Hospital of Madrid where the local government is planning to cut jobs and partially privatise some services of the public health system.
Unfinished connection between the train and Ciudad Real airport, which cost €1.4 billion and has Europe's largest runnaway but has not had a commercial flight since 2011.
Fernando Simarro and Elisabeth Grijalba, both unemployed, pose in their living room as they removed their belongings the day before their eviction court order. "Losing our home is a hard hit to take. You enter a maze the moment you lose your home. Our personal relationship as a couple and with our kids has been affected. Everything has become a problem."
Stopped construction site for a high speed train line between Madrid and Asturias at Pola de Gordon in León.
A worker of Lemona Cement stands at the entrance of the factory during a protest camp against the company plans to reduce the workforce of the cement plant.
Unfinished section of the A-14 road near Alguaire in Lleida. Only 7 kms were open to traffic at a cost of €37 milion.
Vanesa (R) and Pope (L), both unemployed, sit around a table with their three children in flat of a building, renamed as "Corrala La Utopía" which belonged to a bank and had been squatted by 36 families in Sevilla.
An unfinished building stands amidst other residential buildings in the overdeveloped coastal town of Benidorm.