Colette Colfer - Women's Space Ireland

Colette Colfer

A collection of 16 posts

Stifling academic freedom in Ireland

Stifling academic freedom in Ireland

By September of 2022 Advance HE in Britain, who operate Athena Swan, had dropped the requirement to foster ‘collective understanding’ from the UK Principles. However, crucially, collective understanding about gender is still required in Ireland.

The Deliberative Wave Crashes

Citizens Assembly on Gender Equality

The Deliberative Wave Crashes

O’Connor stated at that 2018 meeting that NWCI consultations showed no disagreement about “the need for the sexist language in Article 41.2 to go.” She stated: “On this matter, everyone agrees.” Clearly, as the referendums showed, not everyone did agree.

Women did this for a lot of very good reasons, not least because we care

Women did this for a lot of very good reasons, not least because we care

Enter women. Women who fielded phone calls from people who decided to phone a friend before making their choice. Who thrashed out their ideas on forums and in WhatsApp groups.

Irish NGOvernment Referendum Defeat

Citizens Assembly on Gender Equality

Irish NGOvernment Referendum Defeat

People want the constitutional acknowledgement of women and mothers retained. Motherhood is not gender-neutral. Fathers in the home should be acknowledged too but not at the expense of mothers.

It's not kind to undermine safeguarding

It's not kind to undermine safeguarding

Colette Colfer's courageous stance in objecting to the South East Technological University's new gender identity and expression policy was reported in The Irish Times on Thursday of last week: Lecturer objects to university’s gender identity policy which describes refusal to use pronouns as ‘unlawful’South

Conflating legislation with ideology

Conflating legislation with ideology

So now we know, thanks to courageous lecturer Colette Colfer, that it's a feature - not a glitch - that gender identity ideology is being advanced through Irish society as if the law requires it. The reality appears to be that the law hasn't determined many of the claims now being made.

Let Women Speak

Let Women Speak

To hear the chanting in Dublin of women being called ‘Nazi scum’ denigrates the memory of those killed in the Holocaust, diminishes the enormity of Nazi atrocities, and dangerously demonises women who gathered to speak peacefully and voice legitimate concerns about issues that affect our lives.

Gender ideology in Irish education

Gender ideology in Irish education

Through all levels of the Irish education system, it is now being taught that everyone has such a thing as a ‘gender identity’ and, more crucially, that the best way to deal with students who have a gender identity that is incongruent with their biological sex is to affirm this identity.

Colonisation of the Irish Curriculum Part III

Colonisation of the Irish Curriculum Part III

Gender Identity Theory in the new Junior Cycle By Colette Colfer 12th August 2023 Republished with kind permission from Colette's Substack. September is almost upon us. Blackberries glint on brambles, apples ripen red on trees, combine-harvesters whoosh through billowing fields of golden barley, and parents rush to purchase

Gender Identity, Religion, and Biology as Blasphemy

Gender Identity, Religion, and Biology as Blasphemy

Colette Colfer speaking at Women's Space to Speak, November 12th 2022. In the autumn of 2018 I wrote a poem, a piece in verse, called Woman. I recited the piece at an open mic poetry-night on the 14th December in Waterford City and, the following day, I posted

Women's Space to Speak - Thanks to all

Women's Space to Speak - Thanks to all

Thread from 13th November 2022 Many thanks to all of our superb speakers yesterday. And many thanks indeed also to those who bought tickets to provide this public meeting of #WomensSpaceToSpeak despite the many attempts - even today - to cancel what women have to say on how changes in

Women's Space to Speak

Freedom of expression

Women's Space to Speak

Dublin, Saturday November 12th, 2-6pm Women from across Ireland are coming together to talk about issues that affect us all. Speakers from the fields of law, psychotherapy, education and journalism will share their experience and concerns about how changes in law, policy, and the meaning of gender impact women, children

The Left becomes the Far Righteous

The Left becomes the Far Righteous

This article has been amended 28th August to include a more appropriate rebuttal of the allegation levelled against the Iona Institute* and updates at the end. Earlier this week some of the media reported on the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) formed in 2020 which published a report

A new religion

A belief in gender identity involves a level of faith as there is nothing tangible to prove its existence which, as something divorced from the physical body, is similar to the idea of a soul.

Stifling academic freedom

Freedom of expression

Stifling academic freedom

It’s time to revisit the idea of the university and the still important ideas of John Henry Newman and to reposition Ireland on a path which prioritises cultivation of the intellect above an award system that stifles intellectual and institutional freedom and stultifies open inquiry and debate.

Sex based rights of women and girls

Woman

In a year in which the HSE removed the word "women" from a cancer screening service for women, we celebrate what we are with this poem "Woman".