What is history without her story? This is the question asked by the Global Development Society, DU History and Dublin University Gender Equality Society (DUGES) at last nights “Herstory Salon” in Trinity Chapel. Herstory, founded by Melanie Lynch, is a new cultural movement that aims to revive the stories of Irish women in history, and to tell the stories of contemporary women today, eliminating the need for people to say “I’ve never heard of her”.
The salons were known as incubated spaces where historians, writers, artists and academics would come together and work for social and cultural change. This setting was therefore rather fitting for three of Trinity’s societies to begin their involvement with the Herstory movement. The evening consisted of seven guest speakers, each telling the audience what “her story” means to them, whilst being surrounded by a swarm of candles and fairy lights that added to the peaceful atmosphere of the evening.
Melanie Lynch, founder of the movement, was the first speaker of the night. Her idea for the project came about when viewing the Dictionary of National Biography, which contains the stories of over 1,000 Irish women in history. She soon found that people were not aware of these stories, and that there appeared to be a growing disconnect between academic resources and knowledge. Lynch implored the audience to talk about the value of women and their stories. She argued that popular culture would no doubt play a role in this storytelling in order to ensure that future generations have role models to look up to. Lynch spoke with great passion and admiration for these women, calling on the present generation to rise against the hate and negativity in the world today.
The second guest speaker of the night was Dr Amanda Piesse, who did not have far to travel, coming from Trinity’s own School of English. Piesse used her own academic expertise to talk about the forgotten story of Anne Clifford, a 17th-century, English-born peeress who was deprived of her father’s estates upon his death solely because she was female. She struggled and fought hard for nearly 50 years until she eventually gained possession of her family estates in 1649. The attendees were enthralled by extracts from Clifford’s own personal diary, writings that documented her struggle and also her older years living on her estates with her grandchildren. Piesse concluded by praising Clifford for challenging the law, and ultimately winning. Through her diary, Clifford was able to inscribe herself in history in the way that she wished to be viewed, thus telling ‘herstory’.
Jane Aldenn, associate professor at Wesleyan University, used the stories of two women to discuss her take on the “her story” movement. These women were connected through the field of music. Pauline Oliveros, an American composer, whose compositions span over a period of six decades, had never fully received the recognition she deserved until her death in November 2016. She is credited with developing “tuning meditation”, an exercise encouraging the art of listening and responding to environmental conditions. Aldenn rather engagingly carried out this exercise with the audience, who participated with great enthusiasm, filling the chapel with some beautiful, sporadic sounds. The discussion developed to the story of Mélanie Bonis, a French composer of the late 19th-century, whose work remained forgotten until only a few years ago. Bonis, ignoring her parent’s disapproval of her musical career, published over three hundred compositions throughout her lifetime with the pseudonym of Mel Bonis acting as a veil for her gender. These parallel stories introduced the role of women into the field of arts, demonstrating the talent and determination of these unsung heroines.
Fresh from Trinity’s Department of History, Dr Ciaran O’Neill brought the male voice of the evening. He complimented the chosen format of the salon, as in the eighteenth-century, these were places “where people would network and influence public policy”. O’Neill introduced the audience to a book titled “A Yellow Aster”, a novel that scandalized the city of London when it was published in 1984 under the pseudonym “Iota”. The novel contains discussions on feminism and life in general, which according to O’Neill are still relevant today. “Iota”, later uncovered as being Kathleen Mannington, an Irish-woman born in Tipperary, inverts the typical gender roles, creating her women as “cold and calculated breadwinners”, in comparison with her male characters who acted in “an emotional and hysterical fashion”. O’Neill seemed concerned that her story had been forgotten, but believed that Irish society today is in a better position now to really listen to what she has to say.
Carina Fitzpatrick and Rebecca Kealy made their return to Trinity for the event, having previously spoken at a DUGES run event during Body and Soul week. Both women are part of the Free the Nipple campaign, a movement that started after Fitzpatrick’s arrest for going topless at a music festival in July 2016. Fitzpatrick gave an engaging and clever talk, calling for the people of Ireland to revolutionize how we view gender, sex and the body. Fitzpatrick bravely spoke about safe spaces for women and how women should not have to fear living in their own society. She calls for an Ireland where shaming and blaming women does not occur, but rather one that takes a dual approach incorporating practicalities as well as the pleasures. Kealy followed with a powerful poem addressing scenes of sexual violence and the vulnerabilities of the female body.
The final speaker of the night was Ellie Kisyombe, who touched the audience with her own story and impressed with beautiful words about her idol, Maya Angelou. Kisyombe arrived in Ireland seven years ago, but unfortunately has found herself stuck in the direct provision system ever since. She has worked endlessly as an activist for asylum seekers in Ireland, campaigning with the Irish Refugee Council on the movement to end direct provision. Kisyombe’s impassioned speech was a fitting end to the night, as she described how her love for Ireland remains positive and strong despite the difficulties that she has faced.
After all the speakers had spoken, the mood in the chapel was one of empowerment and hope that encouraged the attendees to begin the broader discussion of women’s stories throughout history. Despite running marginally overtime, the vast array of guest speakers demonstrated the various fields in which women’s stories have been forgotten, or still have to be told. Lynch believes that “it is really important to activate our student generation because you are the future who have unfortunately become disenfranchised, but whose future is there for the taking”. Lynch discussed the recent marriage equality referendum, which showed how “a country with a huge heart” like Ireland has the ability to do something which gets the rest of the world talking, a hope that she carries for Herstory.
The date of January 20th, 2017, was carefully chosen by the three societies, and it was certainly no coincidence that this was the shared date of US President Donald Trump’s inauguration. This point was widely made by many of the speakers, who applauded the mini-protest under-inning this event. Global Development Society, DU History, and DUGES have set a trend, as colleges all across the country in Tallaght, Galway, Cork and Belfast will soon host their Herstory salons in the coming months.
