Sir,
The Department of Education received a mere total of 108 allegations of physical abuse from 1962 till 1982 doesn’t startle me, nor anyone who experienced the school system during that era. It is important to keep in mind that, at that time, schools were primarily overseen by the Catholic Church or other religious bodies. Essentially, these institutions were under the control of local priest figures or reverends and their religious clique, which unfortunately often included the abusive teachers. One must ponder, who could a child have turned to for assistance at such times? Back then, there weren’t any protective measures for children.
Should a child muster the courage to open up to their parents about the torment they were enduring, the probability of finding parents brave enough to confront the parish council, the local priest, or the errant teacher was incredibly low. The societal mindset was to turn a blind eye and deaf ear to these atrocities. As a pupil in the 1960s and 1970s, I can personally attest to the horror of being assaulted by a sadistic maniac. Our supposed centre of education was nothing more than a breeding ground for fear – fear of punishment for the slightest error, fear of a public beating. The dominant emotion was fear, and I bore witness to how these brutal, primarily deranged individuals, carried out their violent acts with enthusiasm and satisfaction, exacerbating stammers or causing recurring absenteeism.
Secondary schools were somewhat less horrifying compared to primary schools, yet certain teachers there too exhibited elements of cruelty and sadism. The rod, the punch, the smack, the leathery strip – all of these instruments were used to instil fear in us, a fear that reverberated throughout our professional lives, shaping our personas to this day and haunting us incessantly.
The mystery of our resilience to such constant brutality remains unsolved. The people in power, both at local and national levels, who were fully cognizant of the happenings, ought to feel profound regret. The supposed educators, who were nothing but embodiments of evil, evaded legal repercussions but should be unmasked and remembered for the heartless, perverse educators they were.
Yours faithfully,
Christy Galligan,
Letterkenny,
County Donegal.