Madam, - The decision by Ennis Town Council to erect a 10-foot wall demanded by residents in a private housing estate before they would agree to a social housing scheme represents a very depressing comment on Irish society (The Irish Times, April 20th).
Indeed it is hard to think of any other country today that would publicly fund the physical implementation of what amounts to a form of social apartheid (which may even be illegal under current legislation).
Before this goes ahead we need to ask: what are those who demanded this wall saying to the residents who will occupy the social housing? And, more importantly, what does the fact that taxpayers' money will be used in its construction say about us if we fail to question it?
We work every day with people who find themselves homeless on the streets. They come from all sections of society. They are in a real sense outsiders because most of them feel they have been excluded. Indeed, often it is not accommodation alone that will allow them back into the community but an environment in which they are made to feel welcome.
This wall is a manifestation of the kind of society that inevitably produces outsiders because, like it or not, it is saying as loudly as possible in a most egregious way to those on the wrong side of the wall: you are unwelcome, or worse. - Yours, etc,
ALICE LEAHY, Director and Co-Founder, Trust, Bride Street, Dublin 8.