CATU – Community Action Tenants Union meeting

• CATU stands for Community Action Tenants Union. It is a union for people outside of their workplaces, in the communities where they live, across the island of Ireland.
• CATU is grounded in the principles of grassroots democracy, collective organising, direct action and solidarity between members.
• The union is open to all those who want to act together against the urgent economic and social issues most of us face in our daily lives, such as sky-rocketing rents, substandard accommodation, lack of social housing, cuts in public services, the rising price of utilities and so on. We want to organise together not just among tenants, but also alongside mortgage holders, those in emergency and precarious accommodation, and everyone else who does not directly profit from the housing crisis.

• We think that the only way to beat those responsible for our hardships – the landlords, banks, companies and politicians – is to get organised ourselves.
• We might not have capital, clout or authority, but we have numbers. And our strength comes from our solidarity and determination. We strongly believe that real power lies in the hands of ordinary people – tenants, communities, and workers – and change can only come when we act together.
• Our vision is of an organisation in cities and towns across this island, uniting communities in a coordinated struggle on issues we all share.
  And We Want to Win.

• CATU is a democratic organisation, not associated with any political party. It is independently funded through membership dues rather than government or corporate grants.
• We are only accountable to our members; our direction, actions and campaigns are free from outside influence.
• All CATU members are equal and actively involved in all decisions and actions. While we are not perfect, we aim for CATU to be welcoming and inclusive to people from all backgrounds. We strongly encourage those whose voices are not heard enough in Irish society to join our union and collectively struggle for a fairer society. CATU is striving to build and improve internal mechanisms which amplify minority and oppressed voices.
• An important part of how we organise is our collective commitment to defending our members. Through organised action, we put pressure on those responsible and act in a spirit of mutual aid alongside CATU members in difficult situations.
• In our relatively short history, we can already count significant victories. Numerous times, CATU branches across Ireland have stopped illegal evictions, pressured landlords into returning deposits, or otherwise helped vulnerable members against abuse and injustice.

What CATU doesn’t do:

• CATU is not a legal advice service, nor is it an advocacy group. None of us are experts, but we constantly learn from each other’s knowledge and experiences.
• Our core activity is on the ground, in communities and real-life situations, not in theorising abstract ideas.
• Becoming a member is not subscribing to a fee-for service, but the beginning of gaining back power by organising with others like you in your community.