Irene Grootboom (c. 1969 – 2008) was a South African housing rights activist best known for her victory before the Constitutional Court in 2000.Government of the Republic of South Africa v Grootboom 2001 (1) SA 46 (CC). The Court found that the government had not met its obligation to provide adequate alternative housing for the residents of Kraaifontein’s Wallacedene informal settlement. The ruling provided clear legal support for housing-rights campaigns in South Africa and elsewhere. At the time of her death in August 2008, however, Grootboom was still living in a shack.IOL 2008, 'Housing activist dies in a shack', www.iol.co.za, 5 August. Retrieved on 14 August 2008.
The SJC grassroots movement in Khayelitsha established the Irene Grootboom Memorial Lecture Series in her honour.
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References Government of the Republic of South Africa and Others v Grootboom and Others 2001 (1) SA 46 (CC).
External links The 'Grootboom' community, November 2000, 2001. 4 min. film. Focuses on a lawsuit by Irene Grootboom, includes interviews with Wallacedene residents.