Press photo agency D. van der Veen photographed small and large events in the city and province of Groningen in the 1960s and 1970s. This column focuses on a weekly image from the collection of more than 500,000 negatives. Today: room shortage.
Overcrowded hostels, 150 responses to a hospital evening and two students in a single room. The new academic year is in full swing, but many students are still looking for accommodation. There are simply too few rooms for the number of students. Not that it’s something new.
On Friday, August 26, 1977, a tent camp was set up in the middle of the Grote Markt. The banner speaks plainly. This is a protest against the housing shortage. The activists of the Committee against the housing shortage believe that the youth housing policy of the government, municipality and university has failed. 1600 students have no idea of accommodation at the start of the academic year. The activists demand more good and affordable housing for all young people. They are asking the authorities to make provisional provisions at short notice in the form of mobile homes, barracks or cardboard houses.
The result is appalling. According to a spokesperson for the Committee, the actions have produced hardly any rooms. In 2022, students will again, or should you say still, take action to draw attention to the room shortage. Hopefully, the National Student Housing Action Plan 2022-2030 will ultimately provide solace.
This section is a collaboration with the Groninger Archives. Want to participate in The Image of Groningen? Look at www.groningerarchieven.nl. React? [email protected]