The Spirit of Mother Jones Festival 2025 will be formally launched in Shandon in the city on Friday July 4th at the Maldron Hotel, and the festival itself, its 14th iteration, will begin on July 24th and run across three days and nights.
The festival celebrates the life of Cork-born Mary Harris, who went on to become known the world over as Mother Jones, the radical trade union and miners’ leader who, for her work in organising workers, gained the moniker ‘the most dangerous woman in America’.
All 22 events of the festival are free, and speakers include the Palestinian Ambassador to Ireland, Jilan Wahba Abdalmajiid as well as the UK trade union leader and Corkman, Mick Lynch.
The SIPTU Trade Union will show the new documentary by Alan Gilsenan. James Connolly, in what should be a special occasion, while Mike Allen of Focus Ireland will discuss the homeless issue, and Joe Noonan will ask whether environmental law and environmental justice are allies or enemies.
Other speakers include the historian Anne Twomey, who will speak about Cork women and their contribution to Cork and Irish Society, and Luke Dineen, who will examine the role of James Larkin. Elsewhere, Jack Lane will discuss the ‘real Roger Casement’, and Fermoy woman Blanca Rice will tell the powerful and inspirational story of her father Pat Rice, who was imprisoned by the Argentinian Junta in 1976.
All details are available on the Mother Jones website, and programmes are available in the public libraries throughout Cork.
