DPR News
Honorary Conferring of the National University of Ireland
On the 9 November, the National University of Ireland conferred honorary degrees on Conor Brady; Mary Crilly; Claire McGettrick, born Lorraine Hughes and Orla Tinsley.
Warm congratulations are due to Dr Mary Crilly, the founder member and Director of the Sexual Violence Centre Cork, who was presented by Professor Nuala Finnegan for the award of Honorary Doctor of Laws by the National University Ireland at a ceremony in the Royal College of Surgeons, Dublin.
First located in the Quay Co-Op in Cork, the Sexual Violence Centre was established in 1983 and Mary initially gave it 6 months. Raided by the Special Branch, the Centre commenced its work during a period in Ireland when working to support victims of sexual violence was seen as a profoundly anti-family gesture. Since then it has gone from strength to strength fulfilling its mission to educate, advocate and provide counselling care for victims of sexual violence with survivor centred, holistic and humanistic care at its core. The first person in her family to finish the Leaving Certificate, Mary went on to graduate with a Diploma in The Psychology of Criminal Behaviour from University College Cork and subsequently, an MA in Women’s Studies. She is most noted for her tireless campaigning for policy and legislative change in the fields of sexual violence, sex trafficking, domestic violence and she advocates for a radical re-imagining of our adversarial legal system. Mary Crilly was awarded the Freedom of the City by Cork City Council in June 2022 and on that occasion poet, Paula Meehan, paid tribute to her “magnificent wildness”. The honorary doctorate of laws is a fitting tribute to her achievements.