Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish everyone a happy International Women’s Day. We are talking about equality and equity for 50% of people. There are minority groups out there with whom we should be working and trying to deliver equality for. It is a poor reflection on society in general when almost 50% of the people in the world are continually struggling to get an equal place and an equal chance to flourish the way they should in society. An earlier speaker mentioned the portrait in the Seanad Chamber of Pádraig Pearse handing in his surrender note and how nurse Elizabeth O'Farrell was put back into that picture. She was painted out of that image in the past. So many women were painted out of history and, indeed, society for so long.

We think of the women in the Magdalen laundries. We think of the terrible scar that has been on Irish society for so long by how badly we treated women in our society and how much reparation we have to make in order to make that right and to change and move that forward. Last week I attended an event held by the Bar Council of Ireland where they were talking about equal opportunity for women barristers and women in the legal profession, probably one of the highest paid and highest educated sectors in our society. That is very valid and is certainly required. It struck me that equality for women should not just be for women who are well-educated and come from a middle-class background. Yes, it should be for them but it should also be for all women. It should be for women in lower social status who are struggling and finding it difficult to survive.

Last night we watched the programme on housing and how people were trying to get a home for themselves, including several single mothers at risk of ending up on the street because they cannot get access to housing. Some of them with children in tow go are having to couch surf with different family members around the country. This reflects how badly we have let down a whole section of our society, particularly women. When going forward from today, we must seek to make it better and to deliver on this because it is very much the unfinished revolution. More than 100 years ago, many women stood and fought for freedom for Ireland as well as for the freedom and emancipation of women in Ireland. Today, we have not delivered that and we have to redouble our efforts to ensure that happens.

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