“In this awful priest ridden country they still managed to build good houses for working people…”

In an interview in today’s Sunday Business Post the writer Roddy Doyle discusses the homeless situation in Dublin:

It is the thing I feel ashamed of, more than anything, as a citizen. Somehow or other in the 1950’s and 1960’s, in this awful priest ridden country that we used to live in, they still managed to build good houses for working people, and there wasn’t a penny in the country. Now it seems beyond the means. We cannot supply housing to people who need it. It’s appalling.

The story goes on to say:

Around 7,000 people are homeless in Ireland. Close to 30% of those are children. Almost one in five homeless people are in employment.

In related news, the Inner City Helping the Homeless launches its #mynameis campaign to highlight the issue of homeless children. In one video clip we see David a 9-year-old boy with cerebral palsy struggle to climb the stairs of his B&B accommodation.

#MyNameIs David. I am 9 years old. I have cerebral palsy and have been homeless for nearly two years. #morningIreland #liveline #sixone pic.twitter.com/XHLfruRBbn

— #MyNameis (@MyNameCampaign) August 23, 2017

The issue is homelessness has been a national disgrace for years. A country that can’t house its own children has no moral core.

Brian O'Neill

I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism, I am not a member of any political party. Oddly for a member of the Slugger team, I am not that interested in daily politics, preferring to write about big ideas in society. When not stuck in front of a screen, I am a parkrun Run Director.