Louise O'Reilly

Overall sentiment: -0.05
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This is my tenth time to speak on statements on International Women's Day. On International Women's Day, I generally pay tribute to women activists. I am really lucky that there are loads of them in my party, in my family and in my life. However, this afternoon I want to record the loss of an activist, a feminist, a trade unionist, a campaigner and my own mam, Mary O'Reilly, who died last September. However, when I look at my daughter I know that my mother's legacy will live on in her activism, in the way that she is raising her son to be a fantastic feminist and in the way she stands up every time for what is right. I see my ma reflected in her all the time. I think we could potentially be in safe hands because now, more than ever, we are in desperate need of women activists and empowered women who will stand up and who will speak out and women who will not be silenced and will refuse to sit down. I send my solidarity to women in Cuba, in Ukraine, in Palestine and all of the women right across the globe who struggle every single day because it is not just about the women who want to have it all and need an extra seat in the boardroom. It is about women who are sheltering their families from the ravages of the IDF. It is about women who are sheltering and managing to bring their children up in appalling circumstances. They are the women we do not often see and very rarely hear about but they are the women we need to pay tribute to. The Minister of State talked about the need for rights. She undermined her own words by talking about the remote access legislation because that does not give women rights. It gives them the right to ask a question which is a right they had before and it gives employers a charter to refuse. When we talk about women's rights, we have to talk about rights that are real and that actually make a real difference in the lives of working women, in their families and in our society.

Sentiment score: -0.05