fighting on two fronts the six counties No account of movement in history of the the 20 year Civil Rights
in a siluation where women are under 0. Has partition creased division A: The short answer is yes. Ir is much more difficult to build unity in (wodifferent juridictions, particularly There have heen feminists active in Ireland in the past: what is new is thie breadth and scope of the development of the women's movement that emerged in the late 1960k ind which SOCIALIST OUTLOOK no 9 October 1988 cry as Freedom for our Nation and the removal of all disabilities to our This group of women suw there battle despite its wenknesses, has had amas women's paper. Bean me hEreunn. sive impact on frish society. in the women x moremen attack. vote carried out hy the Irishwomen's Franchive League and Inghinidhic na hEircan produced the first -ever Irish turn of the century) the 1916 rising gles in this period: the struggle for the ghinidhe na hEireann (daughters of as the revival of the Gache League. the organisation of the Patriotic Children's Treat Cu proptest against Queen Victoria's visit to Ireland at the Anna Pamell, Maud Gonne, Hannah Markiewcicz. Less well known is the gle as a whole in organisations such They were involved in such work Sheehy-Skeffington Constance But there were also women sstrug importance of their work to the strug as the Ladies' Land League, In Frin), and Cuman na mBan. and the Civil War 2: Is the Irish Women'smorement A: Irish women have always played a prominent role in working class and anti-impertalist struggles. Individual names are well known: with SUE PENTEL, member of People's Democracy (Irish sec- tion of the Fourth Internation- al). Sue is a founder member of Women against Imperialism. and an activist in the feminist The interaction between the tivities of the organised feminist movement that exists in Ireland is the theme of this interview Civil Rights Stregle and the ac- and trade union movement. a new fearare? demonstrations, armed struggle issues such as unions and the participation of the creation of housing, trade struggles, and the prisoners' women in the recording the no-go areas, complete would be massive without Page 16 itself.
McAliskey or generation of Britain hear of individual the struggle for the headlines, People in women who hit like Bernadette They are only whole have thrown Mairead Farrell: the outstanding examples of a women who themselves into Page 17 their rights. queston tude in anniemporalist women in Sinn Fem and the creation of Sing Fein's Women's Department. und! the sempathy for she auto-i- permlist struggle in the women s O. He diesthe debate on femin A. The debate hos gone bevond the a group founded by women who were both feminists and active anti-im- portanceofthe leading role of women in support of the poisoners. When Women Against Imperianism staited in the tale 1970s most of the activists in the Relitives Action Committees picketed they poshedthe struggle for- and vel their concerns as women were enored, as were the Women Aglinst Imperiaism was directed at openng up the women's Homent as much as opening up the debare on anti-imperialism inside the In factihe campaign around the Ar- magh women hat a profound effect on both mosements. The debale on perialises and who recognised the im were women This marched. they movement were the long term result. question of armed snuggle. In post and natalim developed? women in Arugh gial. women smovement Bernadette McAliskey ward FREE THE BIRMINCHAM SIX* The links between women's issuc and linually - and baly a strong women's O: How did on ant-imperialist A: The current developed on a 32 courty scale out of the debate around the importance of the Ammagh women l'he debate was started hy a grip called Women Against Imperialism - integral part of the national struggle: the daily struggle must be made con political prisoners to frish fennist, m movement can de this effectively. pronly is the struggle lor Historically these dit- perialisi/feminist current. there was quite a high level of feminism against die idea of young activists of the 1980s It cannot be resolved within ment. Perhaps the lension is best understocd as a confiet about prioritiese Tor 1 republican the priority is the war of national Theration. ferences have emerged around different campaigns- the suttrage, the Armagh Clinics campaign. Before the campagn around the Ar- magh women and the cher- hostility in some sections of armed struggle: While this still exists among some small have a general anti partition exted in the postitical develop- ments cut women that have The unly way to resolve these tensions in a productive was is within an autenamous dehates how to build a 32 one organisation or simply by. assenting that socialists see the women's strugele as an while for a leminist the women. the Defend the sections of feminists". many регрестус, And arc inter- movement which openly county movement of women. gelice of 32 county anti im feminist morement develop? Taken place in Sinn Foin. -P P wownen's liberation SOCIALIST OUTLOOK no 9 October 1988 rights hy the right wing - SPUC and In the notth, women living in the 1. 7osing - which on the face of it are very different from the problems tition: the weight of the churches north and south: the backwardness of the economy: poverty and hackward Contentio work within the confincs of the twe stalelets Trish lemunism has level since the curly 1970% with a tional units initiative in the Tate 197ik, and national campaigas right uptothe So politically Irish teminists have had no choice but to face up to the O. Hitoricalls: there has teen a ment and feminists winin a Cli A: The involvement of women in of that struggle. Only when teminists. ship with anti imperialist women has In the south, women have been it- lucked economically and socially be- cause of the cutbacks of the Haughey administration, and have been defeated on issues of reproductive occupied six counties face a whole harrasment. state violence, imposenment. pover- All of these problems stem direct- ly from problems exacerbated by par- Despite containing different cur ronts, including reformists who are attempted to organise at a 32 county тіь oF national conferences, * па- Armagh and problem created by partition: the development of an anti-imperialist current shows their ability to transcend these and begin to tight to build a 32 county movement of very uneasy relationship herween Homen outnur the republican moves the national struggle is part and parcel have been active and built a relation- there been jomt activity and the open The debates can be seen as a very healthy part of the process of develop Women fighting for their liberation of women in the 26 counties. sou cipiati this brief? spectrum of problems present day such ar Detend the Clinic. social attitudes. ing of debates. their allies.
Jo O'Brien/Format bail compared to European or Latin A: Because of the huge objective. he Church; the cconomy, partition, Irish feminist has much in com- mice with small and scattered groups of feminists throughout Latin O. Whar sort of movemen can br obstacles that Irish Ecminism faces - he struggle against British (mops - there is a dircut comparison with Leminism in Latin America. Avarican models? republicanism, the right of the Irish people to take up arms would be al Queen's when she was kriled: a public statement of outrage was signed by hundreds of feminists in Q How de lemmsis relate to the A: Aside from reformists and those towards generally accepted by tominist ac Dublin the following wock ward national Siberation NECtarian who are Amendment Ireland, active feminises: To that debate am! feminists within are concenco with survival and find- ing allics. Since its adoption of a progressive attitude to women in gene], Sinn Fein is ahle racontribute Unfortunately because of the col- lapses of the organised anti-im- perialist/feminist current in the women's movement during the Sinn Fein need not feel so isolated. lapses of the
America, overshadowed as they are in many cases by massive social strug- eles involving women. Yet despite: this the existence of Irish teminism is itself due to the strength and weightot vanced capitalist countries. Thero can be no model for the development of Irish feminism: we mustlook arother схрогіспесь на а was of under- There are no casy answers Trish the tominism movoment in the ad standing our own problems: recognise the need to fight against There are differences on the type ol that is neessary to defeat im- perialism. But for manly women the necessny for the unmed struggle was illustrated during the hunger strikes. 1980s has moved ou from the taise tivists. Many of these women would actions that take place and the siniegy and thus the debate inside the women's movement of the early partition and to reunite Ireland. hanger strikes the debate that started We in People's Democracy secthis mentto be based on the working class debate as essentiully about the County: movement and the need forthismove- womer's munrement's attirude to Armast has not really developcd very far. and anti-imperialist movements strategy for building a 12 What to he Maghaberry todas"
based on the realities of the situation in ireland. We cannot afford to sit around and wait for a mass explosion feminists face a unique combination of problems, some of the reminiscent of those of thind world women, ex- acerbated by the ongoing British military presence: yet in a couniry Our srategy must therefore be of lemnist consciousness as developed in Europe: nor can we which is in the heartland of Europe! ganise: the importance of building an The discussion now is much more about the role of women's questions inside the gerieral anti-imperialist struggle: how women should or- autonomous, independent women's trovement: and the need for feminists This debate, vital for Irish "feminism versus nationalismi to build progressive alliances: polemics of the carly 1970. A: There is still a small current in the women's movoment that is hostile. to republicani-m. But the atmosphere in the women's movemem has generally supportive of women politi- cal prisoners and concemed about is- sucy such as strip-searching. When Maircad Farrell was ansassinated In Gibraltar there was a wave of indigna- fion inscle the women's movement: changed greatly in the list ten year Most feminists now would he on from the "the debate has moved movement inside the women's false
ceptance of the need for women's Tiheration. Only an indopendent their own concerns will be able to ment, based on a 32 county anti-im- simply expect that the fact of women's involvement in the armed struggle will itself bring automatic ac- movement of Irish women looking al develop their own model of develop- SOCIALIST OUTLOOK no 9 October 1988 perialist perspective: side other milieus such as Sinn Fein. the anti-imperialist movement 25 a whole. the trade unions where there is a strong group of feminists and to a Teminists, is really only beginning, In- terestingly. it is not only wowen who are discussing these questions. but these dehates have also opcned up in- small extont the Irish language move- ment. sell, a large mecting of feminists in The killing happened during Interna- tional Women's Week in Belfast. when a large number of feminists Maghuherty to picket in support of meekly sheerved a minutes silence tor Mairead, who wus also hestudent Trom all over Ireland went to On Interational Women's Day It Bellast » Queen's University unani republican women in prison there. nationalism' polemics of feminism the early versus 1970s. Page 18
balance sheet of A twenty year struggle for same cannot be 'support the current Ireland's positive. The movement within liberation is said of its LEM ENT How to build a movement for withdrawal s u
work" "Unfortunately, strategy for