Statement on the Housing Crisis following CATU national demonstration 5th July 2025

Anarcho-syndicalism seeks both to overthrow capitalism and to establish libertarian communism through worker’s control and self management. While we view the role of the worker’s union as the vehicle for revolutionary change, it is important to point out that anarcho-syndicalists have always stressed that the union must encompass much more than just the workplace. After all, if we want to see the world we wish to create fully realised, we need to organise, educate and agitate in our communities.

In recent years, we have seen the housing crisis in this country worsen, with demand far outweighing supply. Government policy has seen increasing numbers of apartment blocks being built to placate overseas vulture funds, rather than building the social and affordable housing that is so sorely needed. Month on month, the numbers of people homeless and in emergency accommodation increases, rents continue to rise and landlords continue to threaten illegal and no notice evictions against renters in precarious tenancy agreements.

In a recent issue of Class War, we reported on what seemed like some small progress on accommodation for International Protection Applicants. Since the writing of that piece, the government announced a U-turn on the Crowne Paints site in Coolock after months of unrest. It is the opinion of Organise! IWA that the government have handed the far right a victory, by literally giving them what they wanted. North and South many are sleeping rough as a result of a system that prioritises profit for landlords over the needs of human beings. Housing has been used by the far right in an attempt to sew and intensify racist division in working class communities and this echoes pronouncements in the mainstream media and by politicians about a lack of resources. It helps both the far right and those in power in Stormont, the Dail and Westminster if migrants are blamed for the lack of housing rather than landlords and their friends in government. Over 13% of Westminster MPs, 20% of Stormont MLAs and 20% of TDs in the Dáil are landlords. All the major parties get hefty donations from landlords. In short, while the far right are permitted to control the narrative ‘our’ politicians are either profiting from this directly or are bought and paid for by landlords. Those in power are more interested in turning a profit than in tackling an ever worsening housing crisis.

CATU (Community Action and Tenants Union) called a housing demo for 5th July in Dublin. In light of the demands CATU have set out (which include the reinstatement of the eviction ban, an end to the takeover of AirBnBs, a ban on vulture funds, and an end to direct provision), Organise! IWA took the decision to endorse and attend this demo. We fully agree with CATU’s approach of direct action against evictions, and we encourage direct democracy and grassroots organising on housing. Why should we sit back and wait for greedy politicians and political parties who are only out for their own ends to implement the changes we wish to see? For it is only through mutual cooperation that we can hope to bring about the changes we want.

Organise! IWA were proud to stand alongside community activists from all over Ireland, challenging the far right narrative on housing and drawing attention to the failings of the government both North and South. Proposed social housing developments have been abandoned after huge sums of money were spent on planning. We in Organise! IWA feel that there needs to be a new pro-active working-class housing movement organised to take on landlords and government North and South or else nothing will ever change. We are committed to working towards a grassroots movement in order to ensure that everyone has access to proper housing.

“We carry a new world here, in our hearts. That world is growing this minute.” – Buenaventura Durruti.