Naples students protest housing crisis with tent encampment

University students in Naples have established a tent encampment in front of the Palazzo San Giacomo, the city's municipal headquarters, to protest rising rents and the cost of living. Organized by the Self-Organized University Collectives (Cau), the demonstration included the delivery of a symbolic eviction notice addressed to Mayor Gaetano Manfredi, citing “grave political and social non-compliance regarding the housing crisis.”

Protesters highlighted the extreme difficulty of finding affordable accommodation, noting that single rooms in Naples can cost between 600 and 700 euros per month. The movement also criticized the management of student housing funded by the PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan), arguing that public resources are being directed to private operators who charge prices inaccessible to much of the student population.

The mobilization is part of a broader movement across several Italian cities ahead of a general strike scheduled for October 30. Activists expressed frustration over the transformation of residential areas into tourist accommodations and the lack of structural measures to curb real estate speculation, which they claim is displacing students and families from urban centers.