Róisín Garvey (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Since women come from a patriarchy, we may sometimes undervalue women ourselves, because that is part of our societal expectation. One might presume that the doctor is a man and the nurse is a woman, and so on. People catch themselves on over the years once they become more aware of how embedded the patriarchy and inequality are in society. We are all sexist. I am not just blaming men for this. I ask the men of both Houses, if they are chairing committees or at meetings, to be aware that this is a common occurrence among the men here. I have definitely experienced it in other places outside Leinster House too. It is not unique to Leinster House by any means. It happens among left-wing liberals too, environmental activists and community activists. One can say something which is completely ignored, then a man says the exact same thing and the person chairing says it is a brilliant idea and that we will do it. I am assertive and well able for it. I wanted to draw attention to it. It is 2023 and that is no longer acceptable. We want to not just be seen but to be heard as equals.