| Truth, Power and Lies: Irish Society and the Case of the Kerry Babies: Irish Society and the Case of the Kerry Babies Contributor(s): Inglis, Tom (Author) |
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ISBN: 1904558011 ISBN-13: 9781904558019 Publisher: University College Dublin Press OUR PRICE: $52.25 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: May 2004 Annotation: In 1984 the bodies of two infants were discovered in County Kerry. The police were convinced the mother and murderer was Joanne Hayes, a young, unmarried woman who had become pregnant from an affair she had with a married man. The Hayes family and the girl were set upon by the police, two Tribunals of Inquiry, the Catholic Church, and public opinion. Sensational country-wide media coverage galvanized an angrier public response. Did Joanne have twins? Did she kill them, and was her family involved? Did the police force their confessions? The police were exonerated and the family blamed. One of Ireland's leading sociologists provides a fascinating analysis of moder Irish society through the case, and especially the place of the Catholic Church and abortion rights. Tom Inglisn explains that it is important to retell the story because justice might not have been done. But he goes further to explain how the case is an improtant part of understanding how the second half of twentieth century Ireland saw a transition form a traditional, rural, conservative, and Catholic society to the modern, urban, liberal, and secular one that is emerging today. In particular, it represents a watershed for the position of women in Irish society, many of whom were motivated to protest for the first time. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | Europe - Ireland - History | Social History |
| Dewey: 941.508 |
| LCCN: 2004396579 |
| Series: Irish Society and the Case of the Kerry Babies |
| Physical Information: 1.17" H x 6.08" W x 9.46" (1.34 lbs) 304 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Ireland - Chronological Period - 1980's |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: The finding of two dead babies within the space of a fortnight in County Kerry in 1984 is an extraordinary story that rocked Catholic Ireland. The Kerry Babies Case is still unresolved, with many unanswered questions. Did Joanne Hayes have twins? Did the Gardai - the Irish police - intimidate her family into confessing their involvement in the murder of one of the babies? The Tribunal which examined the case largely exonerated the Gardai and blamed the family, yet as a result of the case the Murder Squad was disbanded and a Garda Complaints Board established. Tom Inglis, in his detailed analysis of the case, explains that it is obviously important to retell the story because justice might not have been done. But he goes further to explain how the case is an important part of understanding how the second half of 20th-century Ireland saw a transition from a traditional, rural, conservative and Catholic society to the modern, urban, liberal and secular one which is emerging today. In particular, the case represents a watershed for the position of women in Irish society: many were motivated to protest for the first time. |
