August 7th 2023.
Tributes to the late Sinéad O'Connor have been flooding in from around the world, and her home in Bray, Co Wicklow, is no exception. Cards, flowers, notes and a wreath were placed outside her former house in honour of the Grammy-winning singer and songwriter, who died on July 26th aged 56.
Karen Kehoe put together a wreath for the memorial, which was made to represent O'Connor's life and impact. The heart symbolises the love that fans have for the singer, and the pink roses are for her love of the Magdalene laundries. The crown of thorns signifies how the Catholic church crucified her, and her picture is included as a reminder that nobody listened to her.
Ms Kehoe praised O'Connor for being so outspoken against injustice. She said that the singer 'represented someone who just wouldn't drop to the aspirations of everybody else'. Ms Kehoe emphasised that O'Connor was a 'mighty strong woman', who 'never folded' but instead 'stood strong to herself'.
In 1992, O'Connor sparked controversy when she ripped up a picture of Pope John Paul II on the US comedy show Saturday Night Live in protest of abuse in the Catholic church. This performance earned her a lot of criticism, but years later the Pope would apologise for and publicly recognise the abuse that had been happening in Catholic institutions.
Michelle Buckley and Geraldine Canning both visited the memorial to lay flowers and pay their respects. Ms Buckley said that O'Connor was an inspiration to Irish women, and they praised her for being 'fearless' and 'not afraid to say it'. She was a woman 'for the people of Ireland', and she 'stood up for Ireland', when 'everything that was happening, the abuse, all that, it didn't stop'.
It's clear that O'Connor's legacy will live on, and people will never forget her courage and strength. Large public memorials have been held in multiple cities in her honour, and as Ms Buckley said, she was 'definitely a woman ahead of her time'.
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