University of Galway Students’ Union will be holding an accommodation protest and sleep out at Eyre Square this Wednesday 28 of September.
The protest will leave University of Galway campus at 6pm and make its way to Eyre Square where there will be speeches before the students set up camp for the night.
The Union is calling on the Government and Galway City Council to come up with urgent solutions for the huge numbers of Galway students who are currently homeless.
The sleep out protest aims to draw attention to the plight of the many students who can’t find housing.
Students’ Union President Sai Gujulla said that there are students who are returning to their home countries and dropping out of their courses because they have not been able to find accommodation.
“We have students living in cars and hostels or commuting huge distances or paying extortionate rent and this is unacceptable. Students can’t study and work under these conditions,” he said.
Students’ Union Vice President/Welfare and Equality Officer Imogen O’Flaherty Falconer said that they are getting hundreds of emails and phone calls every day from students and their families who are desperately seeking housing.
“It’s heart-breaking to hear the circumstances that students are finding themselves in. There’s also been an increase in accommodation fraud which is adding to this nightmare situation.”
