Opening Address

Women Struggling for Peace and Justice in Northern Ireland and Beyond by Monica McWilliams

Monday 27 July 2026 | 11.15am | £10

Reflections on Roberta Hewitt’s interests in peace building and women’s activism relate to our own changing circumstances from the1970’s onwards. The talk will focus on the various movements in which women were involved throughout the years of conflict, and the endurance needed to build a more peaceful and just society in Northern Ireland and beyond. 

Monica McWilliams co-founded the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition, a political party involved in the peace negotiations leading to the Good Friday Agreement. She was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly; was Chief Commissioner of the Human Rights Commission; currently serves on the Independent Reporting Commission to end paramilitary groups and is a Patron of WAVE, the trauma centre for victims and survivors. She is Emeritus Professor at Ulster University and a member of the Royal Irish Academy. Her memoir ‘Stand Up, Speak Out’ charts her activism on civil rights, women’s rights, peace, and equality.