A new film giving the testimony of a former resident of a Magdalene Laundry in Ireland has been released this week, with Professor Gordon Lynch in the Department of Religious Studies serving as one of its Executive Producers. The film was produced in conjunction with Truetube and the Magdalene Institutions: Archive and Oral History Project, the latter led by Dr Katherine O’Donnell at University College Dublin.
The film has been designed for use in secondary school classrooms, and focuses on the experiences of one former resident, Gabrielle O’Gorman, who was first confined in a Magdalene Laundry in Dublin at the age of 17. It explores her experience of being confined against her will and of being required to undertake hard manual work without pay, as well as the harsh institutional environment in which she was kept.
Commenting on the film, Professor Lynch said, ‘In the wake of the Irish Government’s enquiry into the Magdalene Laundries, and its public apology to their former residents, it’s vital that we learn the lessons of how the aura of respectability allowed the Laundries to treat people in such destructive ways. Making young people aware of the history of the Laundries is an important part of this process, and we hope that this film will be a starting point in encouraging them to ask more questions about this.’
The film is available to watch at:
www.truetube.co.uk/film/magdalenes