'Wild child from the Bogside' honoured with new mural

A new mural has been completed in Londonderry in memory of the late writer and prominent feminist campaigner Nell McCafferty.

She died in August at the age of 80 and was described as a thorn in the side of the establishment.

The mural has been completed by the Peaball Street Art Collective, and its official unveiling on Saturday in the Bogside was part of the marking of International Women's Day.

Shá Gillespie, a close friend of McCafferty, said she wanted to honour her contribution to Irish life for some time.

"Every time I come through the Bogside, even before Nell died, I always thought that Nell McCafferty needs to be on these walls," Ms Gillespie said.

"She's such an individual, a famous Bogside woman, and she did so much for women in Ireland.

"Nell McCafferty, to me, was a woman who was fearless, and she was an icon. She spoke out for marginalised people.

"She spoke up for women who probably didn't have a voice back in the early seventies when it was really difficult for women to speak. And I think that's just who Nell is.

"She was just fierce; that's how I would describe her.

Ms Gillespie said she was impressed by the mural: "It's Nell," she said.

"The words on the mural, 'Goodnight Sisters', those were the final words from Nell on her radio show. It's beautiful. It's perfect."

McCafferty, who died peacefully at a nursing home in Fahan in County Donegal in August, was the author of several books, and a founding member of the Irish Women's Liberation Movement.

She campaigned for the legalisation of contraception in the Republic of Ireland and was involved in a protest where she and other women brought contraceptives over the border from Northern Ireland by train from Belfast to Dublin.

The veteran civil rights campaigner and fellow journalist Eamonn McCann remembers her fondly.

"She was a product of her time, and she was a product of where she came from - Beechwood Street in the heart of the Bogside - and she never forgot that.

"She would get extremely angry if anybody criticised the Bogside or even criticised Derry," Mr McCann said.

"She had a possessive attitude towards Derry as so many of us have, and I think there's many of us who will remember Nell not as a public figure, not as a speaker or a writer.

"We will remember Nell as a wild child from the Bogside. She inspired or evoked strong reactions. Even people who loved Nell were a wee bit afraid of her, including me.

"It's right that you have icons on gables of our houses to remind you of who defined the area, of who defined the time in Derry. Nell did that, and for that she will literally forever be remembered," Mr McCann said.

"The mural's very good because it captures Nell. Her personality shines out of that mural."

McCafferty's sister Carmel McCallion said the Bogside mural was a fitting tribute as it was close to their family home.

"It would take me a long time to tell you about our Nell, but to wrap her up in as many words as I can - she was fun, she was honest, she was direct, she was lovable, she was cruel when she wanted to be, she was bad tempered and she was my sister," Ms McCallion said.

She said their mother was an inspiration to the entire family.

"We had a mother that was well before her time. Nell learnt a lot from my mother. I think maybe one of Nell's greatest moments was when she told my mother she was lesbian.

"She put her arms around Nell and she said 'you're my daughter, you're a daughter of Ireland and if anybody ever hurts you just direct them to your mother.'"

In a message celebrating the mural's unveiling, Irish President Michael D Higgins praised the late journalist and campaigner.

He said both he and his wife Sabina were friends with McCafferty and were privileged to "have experienced her enduring strength, courage, warmth and humour".

"Nell was a fearless journalist, an unrelenting campaigner, a pioneer in raising those searching questions which could be asked, but which had been buried, hidden or neglect," a statement said.

Higgins said the mural's unveiling on International Women's Day was "fitting".

"We honour Nell in a way that ensures her presence remains alive in this community, in the streets that shaped her, and in a city that was always at the heart of her identity," he added.

"May this mural stand as a lasting testament to a remarkable life, a reminder to all of us of the power of words, of activism, and of a conscience that refuses to be silenced."