Tributes after passing of Nell McCafferty

The death has been announced of campaigner, feminist and journalist Nell McCafferty.

A Derry native, McCafferty passed away in early hours of this morning, aged 80.

Taoiseach Simon Harris said he learned of her death this morning with great sadness.

"Nell was fierce, fearless and fiery. If she was in the room or in the debate, you knew about it.

"Her passion and wrath was not scattergun, it had a laser-like focus on calling out inequality and injustice. She suffered no fools but had a kindness and warmth for many. Her wit and Derry turn of phrase made her impossible to ignore.

"As one of the women who took the train in 1971, she set in train an unstoppable wave for equality and a changing of Ireland for the better. That change has not yet reached its conclusion but it would be nowhere if it wasn’t for warriors like Nell.

"In an Ireland trying to emerge from the shadows and find who it was, Nell McCafferty was one of the people who knew exactly who she was and wasn’t afraid to enter every battle for gay and women’s rights. We all owe her a great debt for this.

"Nell McCafferty left Ireland a much better place than she found it and she played her part with spirit and style. May she rest in peace."

President Michael D. Higgins also expressed his sympathy.

"Nell McCafferty was a pioneer in raising those searching questions which could be asked, but which had been buried, hidden or neglected. Indeed, this is one of the aspects which was most remarkable from the very beginning in her work.

"For example, Nell knew that standing behind the rituals of courts and unfortunate defendants, there was always a complex story which she had a gifted empathy to understand. In her column, ‘In the Eyes of the Law’, she opened people’s eyes to the operation of the District Court and its interaction with those who found themselves before it.

"Nell had a unique gift in stirring people’s consciousness, and this made her advocacy formidable on behalf of those who had been excluded from society. A defining feature across Nell’s life was such a fierce drive to tackle repression, poverty and authoritarianism wherever she saw it.

"Across so many areas, including her work on the Kerry Babies case captured in her book ‘A Woman to Blame’, the Troubles, her own life experience and so many other areas beside, Nell’s writing remains a compelling and courageous record of those decades.

"As a writer and activist, including as a co-founder of the Irish Women’s Liberation Movement, Nell McCafferty played a vital role and leaves a true legacy in fighting for feminism and women’s rights across the island.

"Paying tribute to Nell on her 80th birthday earlier this year, I said that “those who have had Nell as a friend and an ally are very fortunate in their being given the gift of experiencing humanity in all its possibilities and vulnerabilities, and delivered as she did it with a sense of humour that paid tribute to the authenticity of her Derry upbringing.”

The President said Sabina and himself were privileged to be friends of Nell and to have experienced her enduring strength, courage, warmth and humour.

"She will be deeply missed by us all. May I express my deepest condolences to Nell’s family, colleagues and many friends.”

The National Union of Journalists also paid tribute to Nell McCafferty, pioneering journalist, author and a founding member of the Irish Women's Liberation Movement, who has died.

She was a lifelong member of the NUJ, a former union activist and one of the best known journalists in Ireland.

Extending sympathy to Nell's family and friends, Séamus Dooley, Irish Secretary said: "With the death of Nell McCafferty, a bright light has been extinguished. She was one of the most renowned journalists in the country as a reporter, columnist, author and broadcaster. The public recognised in her a deep commitment to social justice.

"The fact that she was so often referred to only by her first name is a reflection of her special place in Irish journalism and in the public consciousness. This stemmed from her unique qualities as a reporter and storyteller. Nell McCafferty could be hilariously funny, frequently controversial and delighted in being contrary. She was never afraid to challenge the consensus and took pleasure in afflicting the comfortable. Throughout her career, Nell blazed a trail for feminists and played a significant role in the development of the feminist movement in Ireland. Always provocative, Nell had the ability to trenchantly argue her case with unique style."

He added: "As a journalist, Nell may be best remembered for her pioneering work in covering the district courts, opening the windows into a world which was unfamiliar to many readers of the Irish Times. Many NUJ members and trade union activists will have their own personal memories of Nell. In the coming days there will, no doubt, be many stories recalled of rows, ructions, debates and long nights of argument and fun and of time spent with someone who has left an indelible mark on Irish journalism."