Statement on the appointment of Mickey Harte as Derry GAA Manager.
Alliance for Choice Derry would like to express our dismay and opposition to the appointment of Mickey Harte as the new manager of Derry County Football Club.
Following the horrifying allegations of abuse against previous Derry manager Rory Gallagher, and the inaction of the Derry County Board who ignored multiple emails from the family of Gallgher’s victim; we feel it is important to clearly state that the appointment of Mickey Harte not only continues a disturbing trend of misogyny within Derry football, but also normalises men’s violence against women and girls.
A recent survey by the Women’s Policy Group found that 91.2% of women think that Northern Ireland has a problem with men's violence against women and girls, with 83% of respondents stating they have personally been impacted by men's violence against women and girls. We have all recently seen how accused prolific and serial sexual abusers like Russell Brand have hidden in plain sight. We have seen too, more clearly than ever, the normalising of Brand’s violence by people blindly defending abusers.
In 2010, a woman - a mother now in her forties - was sexually assaulted by Tyrone man Ronan McCusker, who was then 27 years old. This woman was found unconscious in a laneway some hours later by two men on their way to work. At first, the men thought they had discovered a dead body due to her condition. At Derry Crown Court, Judge Piers Grant described McCusker’s offending behaviour as, “extremely wicked”, and added that he (McCusker) had “taken advantage of a vulnerable woman.”.
Having survived this attack, this woman subsequently endured weaponised misogyny aimed at her by Mickey Harte, who provided a character reference for McCusker during his trial. Harte stated that McCusker came from a “good GAA family” and pleaded for leniency in his sentencing. In doing so, Harte arrogantly demeaned and negated the experience of a survivor of a brutal sexual assault. These actions directly led to McCusker being sentenced for a mere 30 months (15 months suspended).
The Rape Crisis Centre released a statement in March 2013, condemning the “appalling decision of Mickey Harte to provide a character reference for the dangerous sex attacker who has shown not one iota of remorse for his disgusting crime. Sadly, we cannot ignore the distinct possibility that the astounding decision of Mr Harte's to provide a character reference had a direct, material effect on the judge's disgracefully lenient sentence which was handed out to the offender.
Mickey Harte’s unapologetic and continued support of a convicted sex offender means he should not be given the honour of representing the Oak Leaf county as a Manager.
The GAA must take steps to be a safe space for women and victims of sexual assault. It is unacceptable that Derry GAA will make a conscious decision to continue to brush toxic male behaviours and misogyny under the carpet - silence is complicity.
The following article by Eamonn McCann platforms the voice of the woman who survived not only this attack but the toxicity of Mickey Harte’s misogynistic character reference:
“At first, I wouldn’t go down to the GAA club, but I go down now. I did think that people were looking at me, judging me, and I didn’t know how to handle it. “There was an awful thing in my mind about the two men who found me. At first, they were afraid to touch me. I’d been left for dead. I was very conscious of the embarrassment of how they had found me. I felt people were looking at me, talking about me. For a time, I felt like a leper.”
Why is the Derry GAA upholding men’s violence against women?
Has the County Board decided not to believe women?
Does the County Board no longer care about violence against women?
From Rory Gallagher to Mickey Harte, we say no to violence against women and girls and no to the normalisation of men’s violence against women.
Alliance for Choice Derry
allianceforchoicederry@gmail.com