THEATRE:A PLAY about the campaign by women to secure amendments to Eamon de Valera's draft Constitution in 1937 formed part of International Women's Day activities.
Bringing to life "previously unheard voices" playwright Kathy D'Arcy wrote This is My Constitutionafter stumbling upon a file in the National Archives of Ireland.
The file contains letters, from individuals including associates of de Valera, and groups such as the Joint Committee of Women’s Societies and Cumann na mBan.
D’Arcy, a UCC student working on a PhD on Irish female poets of the 1930s and 1940s, wrote the play to give a voice to these “educated and articulate” representations. “We have this idea of women of this time at the kitchen sink but they were actually very active and highly capable. It’s fascinating to see the arguments they made and the vitriolic response from the Irish press,” she said.
The play tells how the campaign succeeded in amending the draft in two key areas, including employment restrictions based on physical strength and curtailments on women seeking employment outside the home for “economic necessity”. “These were hugely controversial. But the third issue, Article 41, remains in place today, which is something we hope this play will help change,” D’Arcy said.
“Women have no history, their work is constantly erased and fragmented, so I’m happy to be able to give these women a voice,” she said. The play, staged in UCC on Sunday, formed part of yesterday’s International Women’s Day celebrations in UL.
UCC graduate Noirín Deady presented her work on Irish priests’ housekeepers. She found exploitation in the form of long working hours and minimal pay. She interviewed 14 women as part of her research.