Exposing the horrors of Ireland’s Magdalene laundries
Books, films and TV shows reckon with church-run homes for “fallen women”
INSIDE THE convent the young women’s faces look wan and miserable as they scrub the floors or operate laundry machines. One turns to a visiting local coal merchant, played by Cillian Murphy, and begs for help: take her to the river, she implores, so she might drown herself. Another has been locked in a freezing outhouse for days. The nuns insist it was a game of hide-and-seek gone wrong.
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This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “Sisterly abuse”
Culture November 9th 2024
From the November 9th 2024 edition
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