My Letter to An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar

 8 November 2017

Dublin 8

A Taoiseach,

On 2 November, I was heartened by your encouraging comments on the situation at The Gate Theatre. You said

“…I think it would be right and appropriate for people who have been sexually harassed to come forward. That requires a degree of bravery of course but also it empowers other people to do the same, maybe people who were afraid to do so in the past, when they see others coming forward well then they’ll be encouraged to do so as well.

We do always though need to counterbalance that with understanding that an allegation is an allegation and people have the right to due process and the right to have their good name protected.”

There was something very hopeful for me in your words. You and I would probably disagree on most issues. These encouraging words ignited further my already strong belief in the political system, and in democracy, that no matter what side of the political spectrum is in government, human rights issues can transcend those differences, be upheld by the State, and protected.

I was moved by your support, at a time when I felt very alone in what I had done. I felt believed and supported by An Taoiseach, the leader of my country. This was a powerful feeling for me. One I doubt many young women across the world have ever felt.

Today, I want to draw your attention further to the situation at The Gate Theatre.

You said in The Irish Times on Monday that The Gate is

“a private body … It has its own board, it has its own trustees, so obviously, in the first instance it’s a matter for the company itself to put in place its own procedures to investigate these allegations properly.”

I want to point out that while it might be a private body on paper, it is in receipt of €860,000 euros, through The Arts Council / An Comhairle Ealaoin.

The Gate is a public institution, paid for by Irish Citizens, through their taxes or the tickets they buy. It is not a private enterprise, though it may be constituted that way. Perhaps it is how it is constituted that is wrong?

As we said in our statement ; Michael Colgan sat on the board of The Gate for many years. This undermines our confidence in the impartiality of the current Board.

We will not email our experiences in their written form to The Gate using their confidential email address until impartiality can be restored. All members of the board who served with Michael Colgan while he was on the board, or who have close personal ties with Michael, need to step down before any process can truly impartial. As soon as that happens, I will email the Gate my full account using their confidential email address, including the issues I couldn’t post on my blog legally. I think this matter requires urgent investigation.

Leo, you also said;

“I’m encouraged by the fact that more people are willing to come forward and tell their stories, because I think we can change the culture here if people feel they can come forward and tell their story in time that will change the culture around these issues.”

I’m writing to you Leo because I am losing confidence that you are listening to us. I hope you prove me wrong. I don’t want to lose the hope you gave me on 2 November.

Leo, change the culture. Help people come forward by restoring our faith in the Institutions. We have a legacy in this country of doubting people who confide in us when they have been the victim of an abuse of power. While Christine Buckley said to people who came to her in The Aislinn Centre “I believe you before you open your mouth” - The State and The System said - “I doubt you before you open your mouth”

It took years of activism for Christine Buckley and her courageous peers to get their justice in The Ryan Report. She told me that her activism cost her a lot, though it benefitted the country, and indeed the world a great deal.

Don’t let that happen to me. I don’t want to have to do this. I want to go back to doing my country proud, by making Art, not by repeating Michael Colgan’s words to me on national television. I shouldn’t have to do this, but as long as people are suffering like I did, I will.

I trust you, and others who have given their life to Public Service to be able to address this situation, because I believe you got into Public Life to make change and progress, though others may doubt that.

Nothing can happen until we all feel safe. That’s the basic foundation any democracy needs. We need to feel safe in our workplaces, that if we feel someone does something wrong, we have somewhere to go and report that. You need to all feel safe in Leinster House, so you can make the laws that govern those structures.  

Leo, I can tell you, a lot of people in this country have never felt safe.

I trust that you will be able to assess this situation, restore faith in the process, and allow women who have experienced abuse of power at The Gate, a safe, private way to have their experiences heard, and to hold people to account.

But sadly, this is just the beginning of what needs to be done.

I trust that you won’t let me down.

I believe you before you open your mouth.

Is mise le meas,

Grace Dyas

Artist and Activist

gracedyas@gmail.com

1. The Arts Council publishes all these figures transparently on their website- here http://www.artscouncil.ie/funding-decisions/

2. My original blog is here bit.ly/gdthinking

3. Here is how I wrote my blog http://bit.ly/gracehowMC