The paper shows a socially significant problem of poverty that results from injustice and hidden exploitation. A response to the threat of the sin of social injustice and economic exploitation of the weaker is the postulate to build a supportive society in which the richer and the stronger – being aware of the bonds that tie one human family – take responsibility for the poorer and the weaker. The postulate of tolerance is not sufficient as tolerance is merely a postulate that is enough for justice to occur; tolerance does not cause justice, though, nor does it assure it. It is not until the emergence of solidarity that the suffering and hardship of other people are recognised as a matter of one’s own responsibility, and their mitigation, or even elimination, becomes acknowledged as one’s duty. At a time of crisis, shortages and lacks human attitudes are verified; characters and maturity run the test of responsibility for all members of a community, especially those members who have been harmed by social injustice.
Key words: social solidarity, justice, injustice, poverty, society, responsibility, supportive society