Why does a double standard still exist between men’s and women’s games that we consider intrinsic to our culture and identity?
Michael Collins throws in the sliotar at Croke Park: “The idealism of equality between the sexes in a new Ireland turned out to be a fantasy. This was obvious from the formation of the GAA.” Photo: Hogan/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
It could be naivety, but, as a child, what struck me most about the fight for Irish independence was the idealism. I loved the zeal and passion that seemed to emanate from the characters in the history books fighting not just for a free Ireland but for a better nation for everyone.
Two of the characters who inspired the most admiration were Constance Markievicz, the first woman elected to the House of Westminster (though she never took her seat) and Hannah Sheehy-Skeffington, the suffragette who went on hunger strike and was force-fed in prison. It felt like Irish women were as much a part of this fight as the men. That seemed obvious to me from the opening words of Pádraig Pearse on the steps of the GPO during the Easter, when he addressed “Irishmen and Irishwomen…”
#Hannah #QuinnMulligan #Michael #Collins #tog #skort #expose #camogie #hypocrisy
