Mother Child Homes Discussion ###DO NOT POST WITHOUT READING 1st POST###

Mr. CooL ICE

mrsbyrne wrote: »

I WANT A FULL INVESTIGATIO!

Anyone else read this in an Italian accent?

Spring Onion

Timeline and information on the drug trials here;

http://www.broadsheet.ie/2014/06/26/medical-trials-and-children-of-lesser-gods/#more-340380

Spring Onion

Good documentary. The 1st of many I imagine.

http://www.tv3.ie/3player/show/635/0/0/A-Secret-Buried

Birroc

This is what we do not want in the Mother and Baby inquiry.
This clip is still haunting but well worth a repeat viewing.

Spring Onion

The Department of Children and Youth Affairs has received 81 submissions about the terms of reference for the Commission of Investigation into mother-and-baby homes

Individuals and organisations had until 12pm to send submissions to a dedicated email address set up by the department for people to have their say.

Minister for Children Charlie Flanagan has also met advocacy groups and opposition spokespeople as well as receiving representations through what have been described as "other channels".

In a statement, the department said the views expressed in submissions and consultations would also be fed into the work of the inter-departmental review group.

In welcoming the level of response, Mr Flanagan expressed his gratitude to those who have contributed to the scoping work of the review group.

He thanked those who shared their personal experiences, in particular, to assist in establishing an effective Commission of Investigation.

Spring Onion

Good article here;

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/05/horror-tuam-missing-babies-not-diminished

Muise...

Spring Onion wrote: »

Good article here;

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/05/horror-tuam-missing-babies-not-diminished

I felt quite vindicated reading that. Sometimes it can be cringey to read what people from different countries and religious backgrounds think of our horrors, but I thought she was very fair-minded in her analysis of the issue and its reporting (though her opinions on our reproductive rights might be galling to some). Maybe after an investigation, the findings should be shared with outside parties for comment and advice.

Birroc

I heard on Newstalk this morning that the terms of reference for the inquiry would not be available until Autumn - it was supposed to be published before the summer recess. Typical.

darkpagandeath

Birroc wrote: »

I heard on Newstalk this morning that the terms of reference for the inquiry would not be available until Autumn - it was supposed to be published before the summer recess. Typical.

Prob hoping that this will all go away and be forgotten by then. You know like that banking fiasco... Like the human rights thing recently govt thinking they don't have any issues...

Birroc

darkpagandeath wrote: »

Prob hoping that this will all go away and be forgotten by then. You know like that banking fiasco... Like the human rights thing recently govt thinking they don't have any issues...

Yeah and yet half the government were involved somehow on the Garth Brooks "issue"!

Spring Onion

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/terms-of-reference-for-baby-homes-inquiry-postponed-275542.html

The outline and terms of reference for the investigation into the mother and baby homes will be delayed and now not finalised until the autumn at the earliest, it has been announced.

The Cabinet discussed ongoing work on the scope and work of the inquiry yesterday and agreed on a chairperson to head up the inquiry. This person will be announced today.

A 37-page report by an interdepartmental group to help the Government decide the terms will also be released today.

However, a Government spokesman last night confirmed that the terms for the mother and baby home investigation will now not be known until later in the year. The Coalition had said it wanted the terms decided before TDs head off on their summer break this week. TDs are also due to debate the issue in the Dáil tomorrow.

Muise...

Birroc wrote: »

Yeah and yet half the government were involved somehow on the Garth Brooks "issue"!

Yep. While our Minister for Justice was getting a deserved grilling from the UN on the state of our human rights, including the shocking treatment of women with non-viable or unwanted pregnancies, a Dáil committee was grilling a city manager about his attempts to stick to the rules about a series of music concerts. G'wan Ireland. :mad:

darkpagandeath

Muise... wrote: »

Yep. While our Minister for Justice was getting a deserved grilling from the UN on the state of our human rights, including the shocking treatment of women with non-viable or unwanted pregnancies, a Dáil committee was grilling a city manager about his attempts to stick to the rules about a series of music concerts. G'wan Ireland. :mad:

Don't you mean what human rights. Shocking the carry on here rug sweeping hoping it will all go away.

Muise...

darkpagandeath wrote: »

Don't you mean what human rights. Shocking the carry on here rug sweeping hoping it will all go away.

I did - and I forgot to add the shocking treatment of women in childbirth too. The symphysiotomy cases are sadistic and utterly warped in their "reasoning".

Red Pepper

Muise... wrote: »

I did - and I forgot to add the shocking treatment of women in childbirth too. The symphysiotomy cases are sadistic and utterly warped in their "reasoning".

Don't worry, we have a new Minister for Children who should get to the bottom of the Mother and Baby home disgrace...James Reilly...sigh

Red Pepper

http://www.newstalk.ie/Government-to-announce-lead-on-mother-and-baby-home

Judge Yvonne Murphy has been annoiucned as the chairperson of the Commission of Inquiry into mother and baby homes.

The institutions came back into focus in recent months after fresh controversy over a mass grave in Galway where it is thought hundreds of children may be buried.

A Commission of Investigation is being set up - but the terms of reference for that inquiry will not now be known until the Autumn at the earliest.
Judge Murphy was also appointed to advise on a redress scheme for women who underwent symphysiotomy.

Meanwhile an inter-departmental report has also been published.

It says the remains of 474 dead children were transferred to medical schools between 1940 and 1965 without the consent of their families.

The report also finds that nearly 2,000 children from the homes were put up for adoption in the United States - with little or no records on parental consent.

Red Pepper

http://www.broadsheet.ie/2014/09/19/cathy-and-johanna/

Cathy Deasy writes:

“It took me 18 years to find my birth mother who gave birth to me at the age of 43 and it was very sad for the emotional/physical abuse she endured during her lock up for 40 years. And before I die it is my mission to see justice for all the other moms and children (now adults) for all the abuse both moms and children endured at the Mother and Baby homes by both nuns and priests.


Not only did my mom go through so many years of heartbreak some time after I was born she was caught putting little booties on me. She not only heard the wrath of the nuns running the facility she was moved to Good Shepard Home, another hell-hole to stay until finally in 1976, with a lot of Irish fuss by my cousins and family, they got her out of that institution and moved into their very loving home for the remaining years of her life.


It was called Mother and Baby homes but believe me I am a living survivor of the disgusting abuse done to both me and my mom. The priests were able to relieve their ‘urges’ every Sunday after Sunday feast with the Mother Superior and her fellow nuns. All we ate was bread and cream of mushroom soup or potato soup every day of our lives.


I returned from Ireland for the final burial of my birth mom in October 2010. The truth did set me free but the scars of the abuse will never leave me. As I believe many others out there in USA like myself shipped out for money to awaiting adopted parents have their stories too. No review or booklets given to them of the challenges awaiting them by accepting a child (me) who was suffering from Post Traumatic Disorder before it was even defined by the Medical Jounals.
I never married nor as much as I love children and would have loved to have a child of my own but because of the nightmares and damage done to me from birth till I was sent to USA at the tender age of 4 and half years old I had a lot of issues.


Sharing my story with others via internet on the adoption ireland web site has beenamazing. All of us strangers but survivors of the same orphanage have so much in common it is mind blowing. Most of us have difficulty with relationships – intimacy issues, fears of the dark, trust issues, fear of abandonment is forever present and many of us had tough childhoods.


I was not adopted as a baby and just placed in the arms of parental strangers. I wound up being the ‘seed of a sinner’ as the nuns called it and the Catholic church came up with this idea to get us out of the country and sell us out so they could make more and more and more money for their parishes.
It was all about money and secrets and lies. And over and over I was reminded ‘blood is thicker than water and you will never amount to anything’ I must tell the truth and those words came out of the mouth of my adopted father. we never were close – I was never acknowledged as his daughter for his 10 year old biological daughter was the only child he wanted and adored My adopted mom was full of love and always went the extra yard to defend me or protect me from any harm.
She loved me unconditionally. Her end came in 1992 and prior to her death she gave me my original birth certificate and my original passport which were major missing links and the beginning of my reuniting with my birth mom.


No longer did I believe I was alone and I certainly was not ‘bad’ or a ‘loser’ and many of us throughout the USA suffered as I did - being sold to USA families and ripped out of the arms of our true moms. All of us children at that time had dollar amounts on our heads for the greedy Catholic nuns and priest for their parishes’ purses and to buy more land…and believe me it cost some of us our lives but most of all it left us with deep holes in our tiny hearts.


But I am a better person today and of all the dreams I have had in my life this was the best dream come true. I had the joy of caring for both moms during their most needed times of their lives. I took care of both moms as a daughter and a nurse which is the career I chose because I am loyal, intelligent, compassionate and had the ability to medically care for them both during their dying hours.


That was a gift for me. And brought me such joy. I don’t think there are too many people out there who had two moms that I was able to be both their private nurse and give them the love just pouring out of my veins from my heart forever and ever.”
Sincerely Catherine Regina Deasy, Florida USA

SpaceTime

There was an awful lot of damage done by a whole range of institutions here over that period and I really think the organisations behind them should be paying a lot more towards putting things at least 'slightly' right.

I keep encountering people from that generation who seem to be just incredibly badly damaged by time in institutions or very harsh and brutal schools.
Many others were also just shunned and moved abroad with no education or skills and ended up in dead end jobs in the UK, the US and elsewhere certainly in the pre 1980s era.

They also often arrived (especially in England) without any skills, with very poor language and social skills and ended up then facing what amounted to xenophobia in the early to mid 20th century.

I have come across far too many people who seem to have been through traumatic situations like this who have some combination of: very limited education, low skills, poor interpersonal skills - often seem to be afraid of authority figures, have very low self-confidence, poor communication skills, dysfunctional family life, alcohol problems, homelessness, mental health issues etc etc

I don't think we're really acknowledging quite how unbelievably screwed up those institutions were and how harsh, critical and shunning Irish society of that period was too.

Modern Ireland's a nice place, but I think we've a legacy issue from that horrendous period of Irish history which has left very deep scars that are only being very superficially dealt with.

I'm just absolutely baffled as to how any of the organisations that ran some of those institutions are tolerated in childcare, education or healthcare given their track record. You need to *EARN* respect, and these orgasniations have actually gone out of their way to do the complete opposite, yet they're somehow still being kept on a pedestal.

It seems to me that a lot of people who went through those 'institutions' came out the other end having been basically denied an education - whether they were magdalene laundries or industrial schools, they seemed to basically be slave labour camps, not 'educational establishments' like they claimed to be. The net result was they produced a whole lot of people who have no skills, had no opportunity and were severely damaged.

The next time you encounter a homeless person or an old drunk with an Irish accent in London or somewhere ... just probe a little deeper behind how they got into that situation in the first place...

Red Pepper

The government promised to issue the terms of reference for the Mother and Baby inquiry before the summer recess/holiday.
It is now November and they government are busy chasing Sinn Fein's child abusers but there is still nothing about the Mother and Baby homes.

Is this the most useless government in the history of the state???

PopePalpatine

I guess Fine Gael still fear the Catholic pensioner vote.

Red Pepper

PopePalpatine wrote: »

I guess Fine Gael still fear the Catholic pensioner vote.

The one word that sums up this government from beginning to end is this: Cowardly.

Red Pepper

http://www.irishexaminer.com/viewpoints/analysis/fears-mother-and-baby-homes-inquiry-will-not-go-far-enough-298233.html

"It advised the Government that at least nine institutions should be included in the inquiry. However, when answering a question about the scale of illegal adoptions in 2011, current Children’s Minister James Reilly cited a figure of 40 mother-and-baby homes.

A spreadsheet prepared by Adoption Rights Alliance, Justice for Magdalenes Research, and Seán Lucey of Queen’s University and given to former children’s minister Charlie Flanagan in June lists at least 150 institutions, from mother-and-baby homes and county homes to private nursing homes that were involved in the adoption of children born to unmarried mothers.

Unsurprisingly, campaigners wonder as to the attitude of Government behind closed doors and if the delays are part of a concerted effort to narrow the terms of reference as much as possible so as to limit the scale of any inquiry."

Baggy Trousers

Did anyone watch the BBC documentary "Ireland's Lost Babies" last night on RTE (11pm)?
I saw it for the 1st time and it was harrowing stuff.
I am shocked at how many of the children sold to America were subsequently abused.
I suppose I assumed they went to good homes but some of them suffered horribly and went on to be rejected again and again.
The nuns were also very cruel in not helping those children track down their real parents.
I really hope the Mother and Baby Inquiry does it's job. The church have essentially got away with criminality on a huge scale.
Fair play to the BBC too for telling it like it was.

PopePalpatine

I didn't realise it was on, I'll try to catch up during the weekend.

Cold War Kid

It's very difficult viewing - extremely upsetting; in the causing anger way but moreso simply unbearably heartbreaking. If you're a cryer, have a box of tissues handy. Few people wouldn't have something in their eye watching it I'd say.

Neyite

I saw it before, not sure where. My little guy is 3, I cant imagine the pain if he was forcibly taken from me.

Banished Babies by Mike Milotte is an eye-opener of a book on the whole topic that is well worth a read

diddley

Watched it last night but I'd seen it before, I'd recommend anyone who hasn't seen it to look it up on rte player. Really harrowing/sickening. I hope a proper memorial site is developed at that grave in Tuam. I don't feel enough is being done to confront this still. We really need to own up to our past and embrace/have a proper memorial for it.

silverfeather

Red Pepper wrote: »

The one word that sums up this government from beginning to end is this: Cowardly.

It's a very weak govt. And prob on it's way out.

Baggy Trousers

diddley wrote: »

Watched it last night but I'd seen it before, I'd recommend anyone who hasn't seen it to look it up on rte player. Really harrowing/sickening. I hope a proper memorial site is developed at that grave in Tuam. I don't feel enough is being done to confront this still. We really need to own up to our past and embrace/have a proper memorial for it.

I think the government hoped that the furore would die down and it did. They delayed the publication of the terms of the inquiry for several months but I think Judge Yvonne Murphy will do a good job even if it takes 3 years.

silverfeather

Baggy Trousers wrote: »

I think the government hoped that the furore would die down and it did. They delayed the publication of the terms of the inquiry for several months but I think Judge Yvonne Murphy will do a good job even if it takes 3 years.

I actually think it will take much longer.