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Something came in to my head today, as Maternal Mental Health Week draws to a close, and maternity services are so much in the headlines.
I kept thinking about Dr Noel Browne, and the alternate reality the women of Ireland might now inhabit had he succeeded
@HollyCairnsTD
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An Ireland where women would long ago, and without a struggle, had access to bodily and 'moral' autonomy. Where healthcare would have been available free of charge to ALL mothers and their children up to the age of 16
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Where those women and children who did not get the care and compassion they needed in the decades since 1947 would be alive and thriving today. But no...
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The Mother and Child scheme was vehemently opposed by the (entirely) male powers of the Church, and, let's face it, several (mainly) male medical professionals, who were threatened on two fronts
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Firstly, there was a fear that the traditional Catholic values of this country (held dear in the 26 years since Independence in 1921) would be under threat with the provision of 'non-religious' medical advice i.e. birth control advice
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Secondly, many medical practitioners opposed it due to concerns about their income
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But really, it was about one thing. Power. At that time, the power wielded by the men of the cloth over this country, and the intensely intertwined relationship between church and state
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And so, we must drag ourselves away from what might have been, and look at the farce today of Paul Reid announcing that maternity units would be advised by @HSELive to ease restrictions, only for the Minister for Health to stand up hours later and say...
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'It hasn't happened yet. It's not a decision for me.'
Nope, you're right @DonnellyStephen . It's a decision for us. For mothers. For babies. For fathers.
For voters, if politicians need to see us that way.
Dr Noel Browne didn't see the population that way.
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Nope, you're right @DonnellyStephen . It's a decision for us. For mothers. For babies. For fathers.
For voters, if politicians need to see us that way.
Dr Noel Browne didn't see the population that way.
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He didn't see votes, or power struggles, or politics. He saw need.
And the need is still there, hungrier, and more hurt, and more anguished in so many domains, 74 years later.
The need of women not just to be heard, but to be heeded.
And the need is still there, hungrier, and more hurt, and more anguished in so many domains, 74 years later.
The need of women not just to be heard, but to be heeded.
Dr Browne was the ultimate 'He for She'.
We need more men like him, who see people, not votes. Societies, not economies. But above all, we need more women speaking for women, and men who have our backs. Looking around right now, I am not seeing much of either.
@women4election
We need more men like him, who see people, not votes. Societies, not economies. But above all, we need more women speaking for women, and men who have our backs. Looking around right now, I am not seeing much of either.
@women4election
