‘Markievicz’s legacy looms large’

COUNTESS Markievicz’s contribution to women’s suffrage, equality and nationalism was celebrated at a ceremony in Dublin on Sunday marking the 150 th anniversary of her birth.

A crowd gathered at her graveside in Dublin for the wreath-laying ceremony, before guest speakers paid tribute to the inspirational Markievicz.

Mary Lou McDonald, Deputy Leader and President Elect of Sinn Féin said: “We’ve had a wreath laying ceremony here to remember a great woman, one of the most unmanageable of Irish revolutionaries.

“A woman who came from privilege but dedicated herself to the poor. A woman who believed in intrinsic equality and dignity of every human, a woman who believed in Irish freedom, a woman who believed in freedom right across the world, a woman who believed in other women, a women who struggled long and hard for votes for women. This is the centenary of women’s suffrage.

“Above all, we remember that we still have a lot of work to do. Markievicz’s legacy looms large but we have lots of work to do to realise her ambition for a free and equal Ireland and for a better world.”

Such was Constance’s dedication to the cause, she and her sister Eva Gore-Booth set up a branch of the Irish Women’s Suffrage in Sligo, before women over the age of 30 were given the right to vote in 1918.

President Michael D Higgins travelled to London last week to attend a major event celebrating the achievements of women in Ireland and Great Britain.

The event, organised by the Irish Embassy in London on the occasion of Lá Fhéile Bríde / St. Brigid’s Feast Day, celebrated the contributions and talents of women in many fields, including the arts, architecture, fashion, business, science and technology.

On Friday morning, the President paid his respects at the grave of Eva Gore-Booth. The President also visited the Suffragette Fellowship Memorial in London’s Christchurch Gardens.