Nan was ‘an articulate woman with a great sense of justice and injustice’
A WOMAN “ahead of her times”, Nan Joyce, a leading Traveller rights activist, passed away earlier this month at the age of 78.
As documented by The Echo more than 30 years ago, Travellers were moved from halting sites out to Tallaght in the early eighties by Dublin Corporation – with a high number of families left on green field sites where the Tallaght town centre now lies.
Nan Joyce featured in an episode of RTE's Ireland's Eye during the run-up to the 1982 elections (pic: RTE Archives)
The situation, encouraged members of the Travelling community to highlight the problems that come with life on the road.
Nan Joyce was one of the main voices, and alongside challenging authorities she promoted the right of the Travelling community to their customs, traditions and way of life.
At this time, Nan, alongside Virgina Heights’ residents Tony and Marie Hackett, formed the Committee for the Rights of Travellers.
The creation of this commitee, which was made up of people from the settled and Traveller communities, resulted in Nan running as a candidate for Dublin South West in the 1982 General Election.
She was the first Traveller to seek a seat in the Dáil.
Saggart resident Mervyn Ennis met Nan in the seventies when he was a youth worker and campaigned alongside her in the decades that followed.
“Nan was a highly articulate woman, with a great sense of justice and injustice”, Mervyn told The Echo.
“She was very proud of being a Traveller and wanted to instil that sense of pride in all members of the Traveller community.
“She really was ahead of her times . . . and highlighted that Travellers are their own ethnic group with their own language and culture.
“She also challenged authorities as she didn’t believe what they were doing for members of the Travelling community was working.”
He added: “Nan was a very outspoken and honest woman who was also a great poet and very witty.
“She was a great, fun person to be with.”
Nan Joyce, who passed away on August 7, was in 2010 presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by President McAleese for her work promoting Travellers’ rights
TAGS Tallaght
