The National Day of Action was organised by the Take Back the City group who have been occupying vacant houses in Dublin over the past few months. Events kicked off in the capital today as crowds gathered at The Garden of Remembrance in Dublin at 1pm. The group then moved down O'Connell Street in a march calling for "Homes for People, Not For Profit" under a garda escort. Afterwards they took up a position on O'Connell bridge, with crowds sitting down in an effort to "shut down the whole city" and protest the lack of affordable housing. The group occupied the north and south sides of the bridge, blocking traffic from crossing Dublin city centre.

The diversity amongst the crowd was noticeable and called attention to all those affected by the ongoing crisis. Students priced out of affordable housing, parents with young children living in hotels, those working on tenuous contracts - all were present at the event and came together to call for change.

Along with personal stories and speeches, music played a key role in the event. One of the first singers to take the platform during the sit-down protest drove home the reality facing those in emergency accommodation, singing "five siblings in a room, maybe you'd care if it happened to you".

Event organizers sent out a message that "the housing crisis is an issue for everyone' and speakers were moved around O'Connell bridge to ensure both parts of the crowd could hear, and be involved in, the action.

Rallies and protests were planned nationwide as part of the National Day of Action including locations in Cork, Waterford, Sligo, Wexford, Kildare, Limerick, Sligo, Derry, Belfast, Drogheda, Maynooth and Bray. A total of seven rallies were planned across the capital in The Garden of Remembrance, Balbriggan, UCD, Tallaght, Blanchardstown, Finglas Village and Crumlin.

Writing online in advance of the protest Take Back the City said:

"Things are speeding up. The housing crisis is an islandwide problem. It affects different areas in different ways, but has similar causes and effects. This is why a strong, supportive movement across the entire island is so important". They added, "It's time for the movement to grow. We're calling on grassroots groups, housing activists, community groups nationwide to take action in their own areas. Actions could be anything from pickets, info stalls, door knocking, protests, creative action to occupations."

Event organizers urged attendance at the next demonstration, due to take place on October 3rd. This will see the Irish Homeless and Housing Coalition and the Union of Students in Ireland, along with other activist groups, gather outside Leinster House to call for action.