Return from maternity leave: The new normal

Me on my first day back at work after maternity leave. There was a LOT of concealer involved.  Thousands of us do it every year and thousands more  have been here before us. We trudge, skip or sail back  into the office after between six and ten months at  home, learning how to cope [...]

Cork barber refuses admission to disabled boy and gay couple

https://soundcloud.com/opinionline96/cork-barber-refuses-gay-and-disabled-customers A couple of weeks ago Mary Bermingham contacted the show after her 13 year old son, Thomas Healy, who has cerebral palsy, was refused service in a Turkish barbershop in Cork city. Mary was understandably very upset about the situation. At the time, we declined to name the shop , mainly because they wouldn't [...]

Sticks and stones

“Sure you know what I mean…” The call to complicity is one we hear all the time. It’s the stock response from anyone called out on discrimination, and it’s all too easy to just nod along and mumble “yeah, I do”. “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me” is a [...]