Lives of Irish Women in Their Own Words

De Valera's 1937 constitution established in Article 41.2 that a woman's place was in the home and governments later used these clauses to successfully justify tax and social welfare discriminations against women. Women would also bear the brunt of repressive church policies, as thousands of women were sent to the infamous Magdalene Laundries. Mary Robinson was elected the first woman president in 1990, but had things really changed?

This lecture looks at the changes women experienced in Ireland during the 20th century.