I don 't know if I'd call it "corrupt" for a person to view this, be deeply moved, but simply not choose to make a comment. It doesn't mean they don't care.
My late mam was a victim of a magdalene laundry, first a vile industrial school at the age of 8, then transferred to a laundry when 14 years old, kept a prisoner, used and abused, until she was 26, it destroyed her and in turn destroyed the children she later had as she didnt have the ability to be a loving mother 😢 this can never be forgiven. I only found out about it after she died, broke my heart, but at least I could understand why she was the way she was. RIP mam, it was never your fault 💔
I'm so very sorry to hear this 😢 and I'm sorry you had to further suffer the consequences. Your poor mam, I hope she finally rests in much deserved peace. I can truly understand it being unforgivable 💔 Thank you for sharing that here 🙏
@ADropintheOcean-lr5qn Thank you 😊 sharing it is required. She was ashamed all her life, and she never did anything to warrant that feeling of shame and inadequacy. Sadly, the Catholic Church in ireland was then so very good at making people feel ashamed. I don't know if it's changed, but I hope it has, as Sinead said 'I feel no shame'
I've been living in Ireland for 18 years. I'd known about Magdalene Laundries before I came here as the whole world was shocked by the Magdalene Sisters movie in 2002... A few days ago I read Maureen Sullivan's book 'Girl in the tunnel'. It was so good that it took me just 24 hours to finish it. And I decided to learn more... and that's how I found your channel. Thanks so much for explaining everything in such detail but at the same time in an easy an approachable way. You've given me a better understand of the heartbreaking stories of women who suffered so much. Thank you!
Thank you! I fell into Maureen Sullivan's book too, it's told in such a real way I hope a lot of people read it! Such a difficult life, but such a strong woman these days, I have so much respect for Maureen! Thank you so much for your feedback it really helps to know it's making sense to people!
Thanks for the book name ill defo be reading that, the magdaline laundry movie was shocking as to what was happening in ireland, i was heart broken for all those poor women subjected to these atricities.
I am the daughter of an unmarred Irish mother and a medical student who would have been considered a Magdalene had her mother not intervened and her married elder sister not offered her safety in Scotland. I was adopted there when I was three months old following a period with a foster mother. I am appalled by the cruel and inhumane treatment accorded to women in Ireland by the collusion of the Irish Government and the Catholic Church.
Human cruelty does not change no matter the so called circumstances or values of a previous era. We have the testament to this in all the efforts made over recorded time to change these behaviours. Denying a whole half of the Irish population a chance to robustly participate in the new Republic is a terrible loss because the fear of being sent to them was also effective in quashing the engagement of all women in society. Thank you for publishing in full the apology it was much better than that given to the Indigenous people of Australia in 2009, who suffered the same enslavement and incarceration in children's institutions here as did the women of Ireland. I feel deeply for those who died without freedom and comfort. Julia Nolan from Australia
Another benefit of the internet! People could communicate without the state or church. Remember Ireland was a theocracy until recently. It’s a nation of astonishing change in the past 20 years!
Thank you for this report and your research and excellent presentation and communication. Also for mentioning Sinead O'Connor. What a shame she didn't live to see this but she was a trailblazer in protesting and speaking out about injustices and atrocities. I was astonished to discover she had been in a Magdelene Institution. I had seen the film but thought it was way back in history - not that it continued till the 90s. Wishing all concerned a happier more comfortable life. It's been officially recognised they should never have been living in shame and secrecy and neither should their children.
Thank you very much for the feedback. I really appreciate it. Yes Sinead will be missed indeed, I had been thinking of trying to get in touch with her when recording for the series on the schools, I was astonished to hear of her passing 💔 You are 💯correct, the Women have absolutely nothing to feel ashamed about, everyone else involved should though. The Women have my total respect, admiration, and empathy. They are amazingly strong women we ought to all look up to.
Thank you. Imagine the Irish Government still insist these were not abusive institutions. We still have a long way to go in terms of human rights issues! The survivors have STILL not been heard, officially. I will get into it a lot more in Episode 3, but they have not gotten what was 'promised' to them following this either. Such a shameful denial to those who were so undeniably wronged!
I hope more people see your content on this horrific era of Irish history. I feel that much of the government’s lack of ownership and responsibility is due to culpability and misogyny.
Thank you! You could be right about that, I find it difficult to wrap my head around it. I just can't understand how people can just shut off emotion. It just baffles me.
Thank you very much 🙏 Yes, episode 3 is another deep dive that will provide a true account of everything. I will be looking at the McAleese Report alongside the accounts from the actual survivors to give the full story.
I guess perhaps people weren't happy with the findings of the McAleese Report basically because it was just 1 (governmental, non independent) perspective, and despite listing 'punishments' and not refuting that the girls and women were locked in and unpaid, stated that the women had not suffered physical abuse... Thank you for your support 🙏
You are very good at breaking everything down to be clearly understood. Thank you for all your research & providing us with this important issue. I’m so happy these women got the apology the so deserved. I pray they do see the financial & medical help they need. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻💕💕💕
Thank you very much! I agree the apology was definitely neccessary. These women had lived with the stigma for so long, I'm sure not being believed only did more harm.
It really is 😞 It's difficult to talk about...but I feel that shows how important it is to talk about it. Its the very least the women deserve- for the truth to stay current, and we need to prevent recurrence.
Fabulous information. I hope these brave women tell of their story relentlessly.... Shame on all who permitted this underhand precision mass suffering & disrespect for females of Ireland. I was 5.years old in the 1960s, coming home from Stanhope Street school Dublin 7. I witnessed a girl bursting out of which I believe was the Stanhope laundry. She was extremely upset and shouted that she was not going back! I also noted that one of the nuns in our school was very stern and carried a long stick with her. We were in 3rd class. Children who were not well off, quiet or were absentees due to bad health were pushed aside to an isolated row. I can well imagine the awful suffering these girls and women suffered. I wish them well. ❤️
Thank you very much Eileen!! Exactly- may the survivors speak openly about it relentlessly! However, not everyone feels that way unfortunately, people STILL try to silence them!! It must seem surreal to know now what was going on behind those walls. Can I ask, can you remember was it common knowledge among the local people what the Laundries actually were and what 'type' of girls and women were incarcerated?
Wow.. I’ve never heard of these atrocities to these women.. Nor ever heard why Sinead tore up that picture of the pope.. I’ve always been dismayed by the Catholic religion.. The child abuse that has run rampant in all religions have made me hesitate to ever take advice from any clergy of any religion.. This documentary is by far excellent in it’s intention to educate us on these unforgivable actions of the State and the Catholic Church..
I loved her music. Hauntingly beautiful voice, I didn't know why she had such a fire 🔥 in her belly either, but I understand why today. Justice for the woman and children who have suffered.
I went to catholic school for the 1st thru 5th grade in the US. At 1st grade I realized the nuns and the church had no compassion or love for their students. This is when I stopped believing in religion. I am so grateful all this inhumane treatment from those who we thought to be holy is finally being addressed. Religion must die, it has nothing to do with spiritually or belief in a higher power.
I went to Catholic school from grades 1 through 12. Elementary school was OK but high school was a nightmare. What the nuns were allowed to get away was rephensible.
What I find shocking is that the politician, K Lynch, was making a grand speech in parliament, yet there was only one other person in attendance- a woman. Where are the other politicians (men)? Too gutless to hear what she has to say! As expected, no response let alone an apology from the Catholic Church. 😢
Thank you so much for this documentary: harrowing and heartbreaking. Again, the what-about-ism on the part of the state representatives is sadly typical. How they can dismiss the cruelty and indifference as evidenced in these Magdalene Laundries, and their abnegation of responsibility is just unimaginable.
Thank you , you have given a very informative description of this heartbreaking and most cruel part of these ladies lives.I will read the books that you have mentioned,thank you . Your report is a really good piece of work that explains a very dark and sad piece of history ... Thank you ... Listening to these women is sickening ,heartbreaking I only hope these ladies find peace that they deserve ..The elderly ladies its so sad and even worse in the 80's and 90's still went on its a disgraceful state of affairs ...Thank you once again for this report ...
Thank you Vicky 🙏 Yes It is a very dark piece of history. I really appreciate your comment. There is a lot to the whole story, I feel the full truth needs to be recorded and Thank you for your appreciation and support!
It is refreshing to hear a full acknowledgement from the representative of a responsible society. In listening and sitting with the apology in its entirety, it occurs to me that many States and Corporate organizations around the planet do not have courage to own its historical responsibilities when faced with the ever greater courage of witness... " Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. " .... with respect and continuing healing...
I wonder if any x-priests, nuns, or government official have gone rogue (at pain of prosectution for them) and spoken on behalf of these tortured women? Utterly devastating stories. I have distant family from early 1900s, that went through similar treatment in Scotland.
Echoing everyone here... Love the depth and representation of diverse research. Thank you so much for this coverage. I'm just learning about these institutions and their atrocities. Appreciate the mission to increase awareness🗣️☘️🌏... There are Irish women and people that care about them all over the world that don't know what happened.
A lot of the Holy Nuns were themselves forced into Convents by their own Families, notably Nuns & Priests mainly came from supposedly respectable families and having a Nun or a Priest was seen as being Upper Class , the girls and the Nuns were in my humble opinion 2 sides of the same coin .A vast amount of the Mammies of old were weapons of mass destruction against their own children , bitter , angry , false smiling women who themselves were traded off to Men with land & money , Better than having a pregnant daughter . Humanity didn't figure in our culture enough .
Such closed off religious ideologies are ultimately categorised as a cult. It is about following the idea and/or strong charismatic leader. Individuals are brainwashed into it and as a nation it involved wider society and ultimately politics. It is not to be confused with Christianity as it should be. Some individuals can be less cruel than others in this cult. One can perhaps slightly compare it to the third reich. I have read and reflected on this issue a lot over many years.
@@suswik3682 Your reading and reflection has summed it all up very adequately indeed .In my experience within the cult & having removed myself and built a peaceful more reflective life , I have come to believe that the less cruel ones within the system had learned to use their softer, human side as a survival method, it doesn't work long time as the body tires & starts to break down gradually within a quarry full of sharp rocks .
@@rozdoyle8872 I can but agree with you. It is complicated with regards to Ireland's history, but abuses of power were rampant on many levels, even very small groups throughout the world in the 80s could manipulate young people. Much is connected to a lack of historical knowledge, humbly said, as well as tradition. No escape from the twisted theology that breeds fear and caught in a web of performance. All very tragic. It is suppposed to be good news. Your lines were on gaining peace were very uplifting to read.
The official word, was that the laundries "barely broke even". However this was proven inaccurate by files discovered both from the laundry in Galway and Donnybrook. All other financial records are held by the nuns and inaccessible.
I just started yesterday (8/28/23) knowing of this horrific crime against the women of Ireland; it breaks my heart. I started with a 2.5-hour documentary and now I can't stop watching the many sub-videos about this same topic. Thank you so much for bringing it forward and raising the TRUTH FLAG, these poor ladies were wrongly incarcerated and their stories need to be known and seen. A movie needs to be done. For me, it all comes down to the Church as it holds the shirt tales of political parties all over the world, and their dirty deeds are rising soon we all will know of their demonic ways and how much they LOATH WOMEN and how they even trash Magdalene's name, she too has been misunderstood. I send my loving prayers to all the victims and their families and to all those who want their voices heard. May all your voices rise like a beautiful chorus to the heavens for the justice that is well deserved.
I had an aunt that was in a laundry in America in Indianapolis, IN at the age of 14. She is listed there on the 1940 census. Sisters of the Good Shepherd. I have tried to obtain a copy of the booklet “Airing Our Dirty Laundry” telling about the home in Indianapolis without success. Only one copy exists and it is in the Indiana Historical Society library. I never knew about Magdalene Laundries until recently.
I'm sorry to hear your Aunt was in a Magdalene Laundry, they were in so many places. Records are pretty much impossible to access... thank you for watching and for sharing!
Religion has been the bane of women since its inception, what girls and young women went through was heartless especially from nuns who were supposed to be brides of Christ. Those young girls who had their babies snatched away and enslaved in laundries was the ultimate act of cruelty. I saw a documentary on this and one very elderly lady was reunited with the son the nuns had taken behind her back to be adopted. She was in tears, in fact so was I at that sight. All those years, stolen from these young women and girls can never be given back nor can the memories of those dark days ever be erased
if it were a race/ethnicity it would be considered genocide...a slow moving torturous genocide perpetuated through the ages. But it's "just women" so the powers that be justify it through their churches and laws to protect the exploitation, abuse, rape and murder against women and children and the stigma and trauma that follows the survivors. The icing on the cake is the "Pro Life" picket signs. "Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do."
So, these women were told, at the mother and babies homes, that it was a mortal sin to discuss the homes, then they were moved on the the Magdalene Laundries where, I’ll wager, they were threatened with mortal sin again. And the State has the temerity to blame them for not coming forward? Hypocrisy!
That woman who said she wouldn't have gotten 14 years for murder, she's absolutely correct. I pray that every one of the women whose lives have been affected by these monsters will find peace, happiness & healing 🙏 Know that you are loved, and I am so very sorry for the horrendous treatment you were made to endure.
Beautifully and clearly told. I learned a lot. Where does this sit in the context of the Cloyne Report and the atrocious crimes of Brendan Smyth? If it post-dates it then the Irish Government's response is appalling.
Thank you, I'm glad you found it informative. The Cloyne report was published 2 years prior in 2011 (the Interdepartmental Committee published their report on the Magdalene Laundries in 2013), in 2009 there was The Commission to enquire into Child Abuse, also including(but ignoring) the MagdaleneLaundries.. I will be covering these atrocities once I have completed the Magdalene Laundries series. We unfortunately have a very dark modern history and more modern response. All requiring attention and publicity to prevent recurrence! Thank you for your attention 🙏
@@ADropintheOcean-lr5qn Thank you so much. The role of the Vatican in all this deserves an in-depth coverage, especially Pope John-Paul, but more especially the church and its unchanging bureaucracy which makes it it's duty to hide and ignore child sexual abuse. These kinds of hypocrisy (rife in all Christian denominations, except maybe the Quakers) is why I refuse to have anything to do with religion. In a UK context I'm taken back to Bishop Peter Ball and how he got away with abuse for decades, the suicide of one young man being an outcome. The role of George Carey was scandalous.
@@ADropintheOcean-lr5qn Unbelievable! Outright lies! The Catholic church is one of the wealthiest organizations in the world. The church has vast assets, including billions in real estate and some priceless art, not to mention the Vatican Bank. But its finances are largely secret. Tallying that immense wealth is pretty much impossible, according to experts.
do you know, that the catholic church in germany did nothing against the murder of mentally ill children, and sinti and roma children, living in their institutions, during the nazi era?
Yes it was disappointing to see...however, it was on official record once spoken so its still no excuse. A number of TD's and Senators were fully informed about Everything regarding the Magdalene Laundries, it just didn't make a difference 🙄
@@lulusmith4877 hidden and drawn to their power and ability to manipulate and control people. there are enough people who get down on their knees in front of the church and eat dirt for a piece of it.
I do not think his apology is meant, he could have made it long ago . If someone in his family had suffered this degrading evil cruel behavior he would have moved himself a damn sight quicker
My heart breaks; I’ve shared this to Facebook in hopes it will raise awareness. The Irish government have been nearly as bad as the Catholic Church in this.
I am very much a lover of films on the big screen and I don't see enough of them. However many years ago I went to see Schindlers list in Cookstown in Northern Ireland. The audience left in silence Many years later l watched the Magdalen Sisters in Newtownards. And for the second time in my film viewing , the audience left in silence. I
This needs to be told over and over again. Both women and men brutalized and committing brutality themselves. Sinead was an advocate for exploited and downtrodden. She was very sane, sharp mind and a fighter.
Words can't describe the anger me and my husband feel at this miscarriage of justice, the laundrys are a painful reminder to us all of how innocent people can be abused and entrapped by the state. This applies to every nation, these women must be recognised. There pain and suffering acknowledged, those responsible apologising and reparations paid. We MUST ensure no person ever goes through this ever again. To those survivors still with us and those who have passed we will never ever forget you, and will continue to fight for justice for you all.
Thank you so much for watching and for sharing your thoughts. I couldn't have said it any better myself. Knowledge is power, so every comment here, every thumbs up, every subscriber, pushes the video out to more viewers, so again- thank you!
I think the potential financial implications is the main reason for a total lack of apology the leaders question he was pathetic and his body language so threatening and aggressive that he just spoke rubbish basically giving nothing but what came across as a threat to shut up! I hope you Ladies keep shouting and demanding your right to be heard and taken notice
It’s beyond horrific that other countries (US primarily) only viewing this as an Irish problem. That disgusting attitude only adds to the abuse of women and I am repulsed.
Yes, it certainly was not only an Irish problem. The Magdalene Laundries actually started in England but spread far and wide. It's great how many people have commented sharing their family's experiences in Magdalene Laundries in other countries. The more people realise how widespread they were, the better!
It's so great to see people interested in knowing what really happened. To think this was within the last century, witnesses alive today. It's just crazy. Thank you so much!
How can anyone say that the state was not responsible when the police returned run-aways/escapees to the custody of these institutions? I hope that all those women affected eventually find the closure they need.
I've always been the same, done the same. Being true to oneself & others. Yet always being disliked for it by the masses. I know what she went through in this regards & it's a constant uphill task & journey. The thing is, it's now partly why she's been hugely respected, though it's too late for her. She was let down by the masses, thought of as strange by the messes. Now the masses are trying to come out in support of her. It shows just how screwed up people can be & I'm wondering if she felt exactly this before leaving us.
There's such an outcry about the States lack of recognition for their role in the Laundries but WHAT ABOUT THE CATHOLIC CHURCH? Is the church immune from any accountability, or something? Somethings really wrong here.
My birth mother was in St. Patrick’s. She workedreu for two years in the laundries and came back one day and my twin and I,at 18 months of age, were gone. Through Kathy Finn I was able to find my birth family who had immigrated to the USA and were here all the time. Through years of work Kathy wrote a message on sites as a last-ditch effort and it was seen by my half-brother who opened the door. Although my birth mother was passed in 2025 in 2016 my twin sister and I were reunited. I have 5 new sisters and two brothers and such a large wonderful family. They tell me that my mother never got over the grief of losing us.
All a big cover up the nuns and priests were monsters no one wants to know what the nuns done the truth is out now god love all the people who suffered they need justice xx
From Australia, it seems the church and state were so intertwined that the JFM campaign was always going to be a David and Goliath battle. Reputation damage, reparation ( god forbid they should have to sell the candlesticks), and loss power of over their congregation. Similar battles raged here with the re traumatising of victims. Many have turned their back in the institution of the Catholic Church.
Time after time and within all English speaking Democracies, and the religions operating therein, there emerge stories of abuse of all kinds perpetrated by State institutions and the Church. Many of these stories of physical, sexual, judicial and mental abuse arise generation after generation and the perpetrators of this abuse never seem to suffer any consequences at all. Which is a shame on our Societies, our Countries and our respective Governments. But nothing will change unless consequences are seen to be applied in these cases. In New Zealand for example an innocent man rots in jail for a double murder that he did not commit. And the judiciary leave him there in spite of the fact that the main evidence presented to the court had been tampered with. And it is with disgust that I discover that films on RU-vid charge money to watch the film of those Magdeleines who have suffered so much.
This is what happens when religions get involved in politics, government and laws in so-called 'democracies' and 'first world countries' yet politicians and zealots have the audacity to criticize 3rd world countries as they sweep abuse, rape and murder under their rugs with such impunity. They create systems where they can get away with it, get paid and suffer zero consequences. And it continues to happen. There has to be a reckoning.
Mandinka, I do know Mandinka was the first song of Sineads I heard a long time ago. I knew exactly what the song meant. She survived what was a war by the Catholic Church against Irish Women and children. I lost respect for the famous catholic men who threatened her with violence for speaking up. The Irish State?
Sinead O' Conner was misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder, she actually had complex post traumatic stress disorder from extreme childhood abuse from her mother. She had done many interviews explaining this. She tore up a photo of the pope that was from the wall of her mother's room, where her mother abused her. You forgot to mention how her mother's abuse, that was influenced by the abuse of children from the church, contributed to why she tore up the photo. I wish you could have done more research on Sinead before talking about her. She deserves to have her true story told.
Hi Sara, thanks for your comment. I apologise for being unaware of this, my aim was to pass on my condolences to Sineads family and to highlight that she was in a magdalene institution considering this series is on the magdalene laundries. Again, apologies for being unaware of the misdiagnosis. I wholeheartedly agree - everyone deserves their truth to be told. If I do decide to do an episode on Sinead I can promise it will be thoroughly researched.
I would add that some of that trauma was a consequence of her being sent away by her father to such a place. Although she did experience some kindness there and in fact a nun got her first guitar and encouraged her musically, the fact that her family abandoned her and she was labelled as bad because she stole ( something her mother encouraged her to do) could only have compounded the trauma she had already endured. She does tell in her book of being sent to a hospice part of the laundry as a punishment and being terrified of the elderly women who were dying unloved and uncared for. She must have feared this could also be her fate. It's all so terribly cruel.
I wonder how much was earned for the Catholic Church through the laundries and the “sale” of babies etc. How can that be found out? Then how much were the government contracts worth between the laundries and the state departments? I suppose the religious orders were tax exempt too…. How much money was then syphoned off to the diocese and Rome itself? The accounts books must make interesting reading.
Yes, tax exempt. Episode 5 goes out later today, and then the final episode explores the finances, among other things...thank you for watching and sharing your thoughts!
The more I see the more it breaks my heart, what sort of sadistic beasts where these nuns, their remains should be dug up and burned on a bonfire, if there is a god I just hope these nuns are burning in hell
Notice most the homes and laundries were in the southern areas, the so-called most pious and religious areas. Those areas who's supposed to be the moral compass showing compassion like the mother Mary ( a teen single mom) and Jesus the bastard child that Gd loved so dearly ( yes in his own time He was called a bastard often and Mary was looked down on no one believed he was Joseph's son nor did they believe the story she gave of the holy ghost. How did they ever believe anything they did Gd would except the abuses they committed how could they believe that the Mother Mary and Her holy son would say yes abuse these girls and children yes do it . When the men and boys involved was never considered for the same treatments for being a partner in the said crime of sex before marriage or out right incest and rape 🤔?
