Respect for Women Starts with Education

The news in Ireland last week has been devastating. I’ve moved between tears and rage countless times thinking about Ashling Murphy, a young teacher whose life was brutally taken on Wednesday afternoon.?

The tight rope conversation I subsequently had with my 12 year old daughter trying to reassure her it’s ok to walk home from school but balancing the discussion with a ‘how to’ guide on personal safety and being aware of your surroundings was one of the most rage inducing.?

More importantly I also spoke to my 16 year old son about what happened in Tullamore. We spoke at length about consent, healthy relationships, intimacy, porn and the damaging use of everyday sexism.?

Having the ‘sex talk’ with boys when they are younger and at the start of puberty just isn’t enough. These tricky and admittedly cringe worthy topics need to be covered in classrooms and at home - biology fact checking lessons aren’t anywhere near enough and I question why there is an unwillingness to include these wider subjects in schools. This must be addressed.

Respect for women starts with education.?

My thoughts are with Ashling’s parents and family who are facing unimaginable levels of grief.?

May she rest in peace.