While writing my monograph On Tyranny and the Global Legal Order, the frequent appearance of gender struck me. But, more startling, how little remarked upon it was. From the earliest iterations in Greece, women were often blamed for the descent into tyranny. Because women could be in the public sphere, because they were not fulfilling … Read more
In my early twenties I once got on a train to Durham that didn’t stop at Durham because I was so engrossed in a book. That, you might think, is to be expected of any academic. But as I sailed over the viaduct, a story for the conductor in the back of my mind, I … Read more
Core fields of international law remain immune from feminist interventions. Despite the breath and richness of international legal feminism, animated by interventions from across the globe and with queer theory and post humanism pushing it into ever more imaginative and thoughtful spaces, bit of international law like treaty interpretation, sources of law, responsibilities and immunities … Read more
The recent, short-lived controversy over the 2000-word Report of the Farrelly Commission (‘Grace’s case’) was followed by an equally brief period of media interest and public outcry. Responses to the State’s decision to proceed no further – with 47 other potential cases meriting investigation – ranged from outraged shock to lukewarm political mantra. As the … Read more
Have you ever wanted to listen to the whole 1937 Irish Constitution read aloud? Well, now you can! Just access here and while there you can check out other excellent feminist archives including: In Her Shoes: Stories of the Eighth Amendment Alliance for Choice Derry The Pro-Choice Movement in Ireland from 1983-2010 Voices of the … Read more
The Feminist Constitutional Futures Cloak (FemCon Cloak) is an artwork designed and embroidered for the Northern/Ireland Feminist Constitutional Futures Project by Emma Campbell and Grace McMurray (Array Collective) in 2023. The Feminist Constitutional Futures Project (FemCon) is about imagining what a Feminist constitutional future could look like on the island of Ireland. Co-run by Prof … Read more
The Alternative Executive Summary: Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation Report, now published, open access with Feminists@Law, builds on the methodology developed by feminist judgments projects to rewrite the Executive Summary to the Final Report of Ireland’s Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation, published in January 2021. The Mother and Baby Homes Commission … Read more
Pride and the Police Pride is political. It is a defiant demand by long marginalised groups to be seen and respected as equal members of society. Its slogans emphasise the struggles of LGBT+ groups to be seen and accepted in the public sphere, and their often uncomfortable interactions with the authorities, and particularly the police, … Read more
On 8th March 2024, Ireland held two referendums to amend the Constitution. One of these referendums sought to delete Article 41.2, which referred to women’s role in the home and to add a new Article 42B, which referred to the value of care within the home for society. This referendum suffered the largest defeat in … Read more
Events over the last few months might lead us to conclude that the tide is going out on equality, diversity and inclusion. Gains made are now being rolled back. In the United States, government agencies are investigating Kindergarten policies, university campuses and most recently Disney among others for ‘promoting diversity in a manner that does … Read more