Cork student reflects on CSW70 at United Nations HQ in New York

When I think about my experience at CSW70, I feel overwhelmingly empowered and inspired by all the other young people, women and leaders I met who are just as dedicated as I am to equality and fairness.

However, when I was there, I also felt waves of sadness and was very emotional at times.

I realised that this is because, despite the progress we have made, we are still fighting for basic human rights and dignities to be afforded to so many women.

At the event, Dutch Minister Judith Tielen said, ‘freedom is a gift, not a given’, and I think it’s important that CSW continues to be an event that civil society can access.

Having returned home, I have reflected on feminist author Bell Hooks’ vision which has always inspired me. Hooks was a professor and social activist who invites]d us to ‘imagine living in a world where there is no domination, where females and males are not alike or even always equal, but where a vision of mutuality is the ethos shaping our interaction’.

This is a critical time to be reminded of this dream, to be engaging with feminism and advocating for gender equality, no matter your gender. At CSW, I learned that the pressure to advance gender equality is an intergenerational, transnational, and intersectional fight that has a place for everyone.

On top of these emotions, I felt immense gratitude to have had the opportunity to participate in one of the United Nations’ most significant annual events.

At my age, 20 years old, both my grandmothers were married and had children. I feel so grateful to them and what they have taught me but also, grateful that I can go to university, work, use my voice, travel, make a difference and attend a United Nations event in NYC.

I was also reminded of how thankful I am to all the women who came before me and fought for equality, giving me the opportunities I am afforded today.

However, in New York, I learned that it is now this generation’s fight to safeguard those hard-fought successes.

The priority theme was ‘access to justice for all women and girls’ which, as a law student and a feminist, is an area of focus that I am incredibly passionate about.

The importance of this theme was further reinforced to me when the US delegation were the only country to vote against the agreed conclusions and worked to strip mentions of gender equality progress out of the resolutions.

Representatives from all regions of the world are invited to attend the session each year. However, travel, cost and access restrictions meant some members of civil society struggled to attend this year. The key lesson is that now, more than ever, when people are being silenced and pushed out of critical conversations, is the time to advocate for equality and inclusion even more fervently.

I spoke at the UN on a panel about ‘Gendered Misinformation’ and reflected on how this impacts me and my community through the lens of being a young woman and a young advocate.

As a young woman, I’m particularly concerned about the sharing of intimate images online, which has a huge psychological impact on people. As a young advocate, it’s the changing narrative around set gender roles that I’m fearful of. Unfortunately, the more misogynistic narratives increase online, the more they seem to permeate in real-life.

Digital governance is shaping, not only our futures, but also our realities and women need to be shaping the online space if we want to see equality. We also need to tackle this as a systemic issue that affects all of society, since gendered misinformation is a tool for radicalisation and polarisation.

I was also honoured to moderate the launch of the ‘Real Choices, Real Lives’ study. This longitudinal study’s key finding was that women’s rights have advanced, but a lot more progress is still needed and girls are the ones who are pushing back against normative patriarchal stereotypes. This research is something I have been using in my advocacy post-CSW.

At the event, we heard from the CEO of Plan, Reena Ghelani and from a panel discussion on reflections, lessons and instructions for action from the report. As moderator, I was also sent questions from young people who actually participated in the study but could not attend CSW due to restrictions on access and travel and was asked to speak for them.

I was honoured to meet Barbara Curran, the Director General of Global Affairs Canada, and with Irish MEP Maria Walsh to talk about advancing the campaign for free and accessible period products in all bathrooms, which was an invaluable conversation as it gave us direction for when we returned to Ireland.

At the Women in Leadership Mentorship, I met Ms Brigitte Garceau, an MP from Quebec in Canada, who gave me incredible insights into her career. I found her advice on balancing a career, your aspirations and family to have been especially candid and enlightening for me as I navigate my 20s and the beginnings of a career as a woman.

Finally, we headed to the Irish Mission, where we met with the Irish government’s representatives.

It is no secret that political tides have changed in the last few years and I personally find the state of the world deeply concerning at the moment, which is why it felt so important to me to go to CSW. One speaker described this moment as the ‘paradox of progress’.

On the one hand, the world is advancing rapidly due to developments in technology, and yet, on the other, some women are still fighting for the ‘little things’ such as street lights on their walk home.

Furthermore, it feels to me that attitudes around gender equality are regressing as opposed to advancing, and abuse is preventing women from feeling empowered to use their voices.

Ultimately, though, being surrounded by so many inspiring, kind, and driven women reminded me why I am a gender equality advocate and has left me with a sense of motivation that I hoped to share with you through this piece.