Truth, Power and Lies: Irish Society and the Case of the Kerry Babies

In 1984 the bodies of two infants were discovered in County Kerry. The police were convinced the mother and murderer was Joanne Hayes, a young, unmarried woman who had become pregnant from an affair she had with a married man. The Hayes family and the girl were set upon by the police, two Tribunals of Inquiry, the Catholic Church, and public opinion. Sensational country-wide media coverage galvanized an angrier public response. Did Joanne have twins? Did she kill them, and was her family involved? Did the police force their confessions? The police were exonerated and the family blamed. One of Ireland's leading sociologists provides a fascinating analysis of modern Irish society through the case. He explains how the case is an important part of understanding how the second half of twentieth century Ireland saw a transition from a traditional, rural, conservative, and Catholic society to the modern, urban, liberal, and secular one. In particular, it represents a watershed for the position of women in Irish society, many of whom were motivated to protest for the first time.