In consultation with the municipality, it was decided to move the protest to the much larger Westerpark, reports the organization on Twitter. After the demonstration at 2 p.m. in the park, a protest march to Dam Square follows.
Behind the Housing protest are independent activists. They are supported by political parties and interest groups, the FNV trade union, ASVA Studentenunie and various tenants’ associations. They demand that something be done about the situation on the housing market.
waiting lists
They denounce the long waiting lists for social housing, the high rents in the private sector and on the owner-occupied market and the number of homeless people and speak of a housing crisis.
The first protest of the new movement is planned for September 12 in Amsterdam. On October 23, a protest will follow in Rotterdam under the name Woonopstand.
A statement from the municipality that the protest was also decided because the Concertgebouw Orchestra gives a large free concert on Friday. The dismantling of this stage the next day hinders the construction of stages by the organizers of the housing protest.
“In addition, many participants are expected. There is much more space in the Westerpark and that provides more safety,” the words say.
What does the organization want?
The parties that have united under the name Het Woonprotest want there to be sufficient and affordable housing. We also have to ensure that racism and class discrimination in housing and housing policy comes to an end.
they include, among other things, demolishing cheap housing in neighborhoods where much poorer people of people with a migrant background live in order to build more expensive owner-occupied housing instead. There is also a shortage of continuing to sell social housing, according to Het Woonprotest. Furthermore, squatting should disappear from the criminal law again, which according to the organizations is ‘part of the basic right of residence’.