CATU News - Week 21 (in the sun) ☀️

A chairde,

CATU’s Housing Support Group series is kicking off next week, with sessions taking place across Dublin in Tallaght, Coolock and Ballymun.

The aim of these support groups is to bring our problems together and find practical solutions, supporting each other as a community in doing so. Whether you’re facing eviction, have an unresponsive landlord or are being ignored by the Council, come along to a support group session.

The Tallaght session will take place at 10am on Tuesday in Glenshane Community Centre.

For Coolock, it’s Wednesday at 10am in Sphere 17.

And in Ballymun, it’s a 19:00 start in the Axis.

Please get in touch if you’d be interested in establishing a similar group session in your local area.

This Saturday, join CATU Phibsboro-Glasnevin, Mountjoy-Dorset and D7 West for a special housing action evening in the glorious surrounds of Mono’s Bar in Dalymount Park. The evening will consist of a Know Your Rights workshop at 18:00, a public meeting at 19:00 and a social with music from 20:00.

CATU Mountjoy-Dorset and local community members have been campaigning tirelessly over the past week in support of fellow member Danielle and her son Theo. The demolition of Leech’s Paper Mill for a 'build to rent' development threatens Theo with serious illness due to his fight against Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

We’re campaigning to ensure there's no demolition until Theo and his mam Danielle and safety rehoused. To that end, over 500 signatures were collected locally and delivered to Dublin City Council. A meeting with senior figures was secured, and we got a commitment that DCC will investigate the development timeline and follow up on progressing Daniele's housing situation. Well done to all involved in getting to this point!

Tomorrow (Friday) afternoon, the IPSC will stage another action outside AXA HQ in Dublin 1. There is an ongoing demand for AXA to stop investing customers’ money in apartheid Israel’s Hapoalim Bank. There can be no business as usual for companies who bankroll war crimes. Bígí Linn from 13:30.

CATU Kilkenny-Carlow will present a screening of ‘The Rent Strike’ on Sunday at 7pm in St. Canice’s Community Hall in Kilkenny. Admission is free and all are welcome to attend, members and non-members alike.

CATU Waterford members have been doorknocking in the Railway Square apartment blocks, speaking to residents living there including private and council tenants.

The owners of the flats, Causeway Group, have been failing residents by allowing extreme mould issues to fester, overlooking destroyed shared spaces and a lack of security for residents.

Members locally are continuing to organise and plan to hold a meeting with residents shortly. If you’d like to get involved, contact [email protected] 

CATU Dublin 3 organised a summery coffee morning in the common spaces of Ballybough House to collect signatures for a petition demanding DCC to take concerns re: quality of life improvements in the Ballybough House flats seriously.

The petition makes clear the branch’s demands for opening up the long-defunct community room, fixing the lights in the hallways, and doing up play areas for young children.

There is also a demand for a clear timeline for when structural work can be undertaken to rid the space of damp and mould– a persistent and debilitating problem for many residents in public housing. Residents came by, had a chat with D3 members at the desk, wrote down their complaints and signed the petition. It was a great moment for new residents to meet older residents and just great fun on a rare sunny morning! The branch will now strategise with member-residents to bring this petition to the council and have our demands met.

In Solidarity_,

Naoise Faogáin
National Administrator
Community Action Tenants Union - CATU Ireland
www.catuireland.org