Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
AGE has certainly been an important demographic in the EU referendum. But in the hasty tweets and articles I have read since the result, some people who are supposedly on the left have been disappointingly lazy and in some cases outright offensive with their language about older people.
If the deciding group in this referendum were “the Muslims” or “the women” or “the LGBTQ community,” there would have been an outcry about the stereotyping and insults that have been slung.
Ageism is a prejudice like any other, and older people, particularly older women, are one of the most silenced and disempowered groups in our society.
Gisele Pelicot said ‘shame must change sides.’ We may think we agree, but, argues LOUISE RAW, society still has some way to go
TOM GALLAHUE argues that asking what role Irish diaspora educators can play in shaping Irish unity is to ask a deeper question about democracy itself
AMANDA J QUICK warns about the ever-expanding influence of the sex industry – and the harm it unleashes on both the women involved and society collectively, especially the young
LYNNE WALSH reports from the Women’s Declaration International conference on feminist struggles from Britain to the Far East


