The housing crisis is getting worse, not better. Rents continue to soar. The number that are homeless is nearly 13,000. And now mortgage holders will pay, on average, an extra €3,000 plus a year.
It is truly shocking. But where are the protests?
Raise the Roof seems like a promising vehicle to mobilise people. It brings together many different trade unions, student unions, and political parties. It has already brought thousands onto the streets and it has a clear political message.
At a march in Cork in June, Adrian Kane from SIPTU said that the housing crisis could only be solved by ‘radical political change’. Too right! He went on to condemn far-right attempts to scapegoat refugees for the crisis.
But instead of carrying through with the protests, there has been a slow-down. The ICTU are showing a distinct lack of enthusiasm for action.
The government is still putting out its absurd propaganda on housing, claiming for example that more tax breaks for landlords will help solve the crisis. They are getting off scot-free when they should be met by an organised expression of public anger.
It is not good enough to wait for a change of government at the next general election. The more radical and determined we are now, the more change we will get from a government.
Unfortunately, this message is not really understood by the leaders of the ICTU. While they have taken welcome steps in helping to mobilise people on the housing crisis, they need to carry through.
We need big protests over housing in the coming months. The Cost of Living Campaign is holding a major demonstration on October 7th and will be highlighting the housing crisis.
But Raise the Roof should carry the baton forward. One or even two protests will not force change. But people power and radical action can.
It is time for the ICTU and Raise the Roof to hit the streets again.
