‘Elisha McCallion: The Dawning of the Day’ by Donal Lavery

I always think it’s right to be respectful in politics, particularly towards women, who are our sisters, mothers, aunts, daughters and grandparents. As a child, I remember a grey era in politics, which was dominated by figures like Anne Widdecombe and Edwina Currie; where women could only go far in political parties if they towed the line set by men. Thankfully, the sun is finally starting to set on that repugnant reality. And with it, a new dawn is emerging from the stars which preceded it. A dawn which makes no negative distinctions based on the concept or biology of gender; and a future Ireland which will be no place for restrictive practices or outdated methods in any of our public or private industries. The era of male domination in politics is concluding, and not short enough it was.

For it’s important for young girls to have good role models in life, to demonstrate to them first hand that no glass ceiling is too resilient to break; to show that they can be both intelligent and glamorously confident, without sacrificing one for the other. In Derry, there is a young lady who the public are now utterly intrigued by. Respectfully and in the same awe as Kavanagh when he wrote his poem, I say, she has the eyes and face of a movie star; the pleasant, authoritative voice of a song artist; the flare of Mairead Farrell; the resilience of Bernadette Devlin and the patriotism of the rebel Countess, rolled into one. But beneath the warm exterior, she has the intellect, attitude and grit to carry a community along key objectives and a national vision. I’m not trying to resonate a simple cliche, but there exists no greater proof in Ireland for young working class women that you can wield both “brains and beauty”, while being a successful leader and family-centred parent too, than Derry’s own Elisha McCallion – that you, as women, will never have to just remain something quiet and confined to the arm of a husband. Those days are dead in the water, but there is still much to do, to ensure they never under any circumstances come back from the gutter.

When I listen to Elisha McCallion speak, I almost feel like I can hear a confident reverberation of all the patriot dead who gave everything for the liberation of women via the liberation of a nation. For she represents “the future” Ireland; one which constitutionally emancipates all its daughters fully, to rectify all the wrongs which Connolly opined as – “working class men being slaves to their employers, and women being slaves to those slaves.” Here is a young woman (35), who is of her community and for her community. Someone who knows what it’s like to be a parent with young children and to have to struggle in life within a complex and unjust world. Here is a candidate living among the people she represents, and who is actually representative of that demographic and wishes of those who elect her to fight for them. The epitome of direct democracy and localism in practice.

Contrast this with the older, greying and conservative incumbent in Derry, who admitted just recently that taking his seat at Westminster isn’t going to be worth tuppence in thwarting Theresa May’s agenda. The man who did nothing to stop the implementation of student fees here when he was dominating the Executive with the Ulster Unionists. Contrast this with someone living a lavish London lifestyle at the expense of British taxpayers. The people of Derry suffer from tremendous poverty and deprivation, especially when most investment is concentrated in the affluence  of Belfast. Suicide and mental illness are rife. Children have an uncertain future. Parents are worrying about the potential for tax-credit changes. Young people need university places and employment, to be earning or learning. There are many unresolved legacy issues which have traumatised the people of Foyle, locally and nationally. So they need an activist and fighter to champion their cause, not a canny careerist.

And then ask yourself this – who is truly more reflective not just of the constituency but of the expressed needs of this particular constituency? For it’s time now to shed a failed political class of “Catholic Bishops in suits”, pretending to care about the national question or inequality, and see with vigour the North West of one of Ireland’s four green fields realise it’s potential to prosper once again. The people of Derry must understand that they have produced not simply a prospective MP with a radical equality agenda; but a prospective President of Ireland – to carry on the exceptional work of Mary Robinson and Mary McAleese. To any scholar of fair mind, Mr Durkan is history; while Elisha McCallion is the stuff of our history books. Power to the women of Ireland!