Celebrating 100 Years of International Women's Day
8 March 2011
The National Women's Council of Ireland would like to thank everyone for their support on International Women's Day.
All of our events were a success thanks to the unwavering support of both our members and the general public.
The following poem was written by Cherry Smyth for the National Women's Council of Ireland for International Women's Day. It was read out by Clare Treacy at the National Library exhibition.
Look at the Cut of Us
By Cherry Smyth
I don't know if you know but we wade
out to meet our men in the currachs,
to collect the catch, our skirts dragged
by the current, hands foundered.
We pile the fish in the creels, fingers
rough with scales, hooking into gills,
cold, cold work and then back to shore,
almost tumbling over in the waves.
We stand all morning selling, the salt
crisping our skin, our shawls
dripping the sea, palms blue and cold
as the coins we can't feel. We hate fish,
would never touch it. We like our food
plain, stone plain. We wish we had lady's
hands, not these stiff sore things
that can hardly braid our daughters' hair.
We don't bother looking nice, except for Mass,
and the awful shame at being stood still
for that camera - this is day-in, day-out,
food on the table, not the stuff of pretty girls in pictures.
We hope future International Women's Day events will be just as successful and, once again, thanks for your over-whelming support.
Venue
Various locations