A public meeting organised and hosted by Social Democrats city Councillor Gary Gannon will explore the idea of a ‘Site of Conscience’ at the former Seán McDermott Street Magdalene Laundry, which risks being sold by Dublin City Council and turned into a hotel.
The meeting will take place at 7pm. tomorrow, Thursday 28th June, in the Belvedere Youth Club on Buckingham Street.
The event will include local historians, musicians and activists.
Speakers will include: Maeve O’Rourke, Senior Research and Policy Officer, Irish Council for Civil Liberties; Sian Muldowney, Coordinator of ICON – Inner City Organisations Network; and Deirdre Cadwell, a Magdalene survivor.
Councillor Gannon said:
“This promises to be a moving night with emotional and sometimes difficult topics and exchanges as our city confronts how to commemorate its dark past and not sweep it under the carpet.
“The recent gathering in the Mansion House of survivors of the Magdalene Laundries was a cathartic event and the first time the women themselves were given an opportunity to voice their opinions on how to remember their experiences.
“There is now an opportunity to create something meaningful on the Seán McDermott Street site which is the last laundry in the ownership of the State.”
What: Public meeting – A Site of Conscience -–The Magdalene Laundry and Dublin’s Inner City
When: Thursday 28th June 7p.m.
Where: Belvedere Youth Club, 41 Lower Buckingham Street, Dublin 1
ENDS