Máire Drumm was the vice president of Sinn Féin

Sinn Féin

Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...

 and a commander in Cumann na mBan

Cumann na mBan

Cumann na mBan is an Irish republican women's paramilitary organisation formed in Dublin on 2 April 1914 as an auxiliary of the Irish Volunteers...

. She was assassinated by loyalists

Ulster loyalism

Ulster loyalism is an ideology that is opposed to a united Ireland. It can mean either support for upholding Northern Ireland's status as a constituent part of the United Kingdom , support for Northern Ireland independence, or support for loyalist paramilitaries...

 while recovering in Belfast's Mater Hospital

Mater Infirmorum Hospital

The Mater Infirmorum Hospital, commonly known as The Mater is an acute hospital in Belfast, Northern Ireland and serves a population of over 200,000 people. It provides services to most of North Belfast and South Antrim, reaching as far as Glengormley, Carrickfergus and Newtownabbey. It also...

.

Born in Newry

Newry

Newry is a city in Northern Ireland. The River Clanrye, which runs through the city, formed the historic border between County Armagh and County Down. It is from Belfast and from Dublin. Newry had a population of 27,433 at the 2001 Census, while Newry and Mourne Council Area had a population...

, County Down

County Down

-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...

 to a staunchly republican family. Drumm's mother had been active in the War of Independence and the Civil War. Drumm grew up in the village of Killean, County Armagh

Killean, County Armagh

Killean or Killeen"Killeen" is the official name of the townland. is a small village and townland in the civil parish of Killeavy, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It lies about four miles south of Newry, near the border with the Republic of Ireland. In the 2001 Census, it had a population of 75...

, where she played camogie

Camogie

Camogie is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women; it is almost identical to the game of hurling played by men. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and world wide, largely among Irish communities....

 (the female form of hurling). She was active in the republican movement after meeting her husband, a republican prisoner, and became involved in the Civil Rights

Civil rights

Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...

 movement in the 1960s and worked to rehouse Catholics forced from their homes by loyalist intimidation.

She was jailed twice for 'seditious speeches'. After she was released from Armagh Prison, raids on her house by the security forces escalated, her health began to fail and she was admitted to the Mater Hospital, Belfast.

On 28 October 1976, Maíre Drumm was assassinated in her hospital bed by Loyalist paramilitaries.

Quotes

Drumm's speeches and quotations can be found on murals across Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

. These include:

• "The only people worthy of freedom are those who are prepared to go out and fight for it every day, and die if necessary."

• "We must take no steps backward, our steps must be onward, for if we don't, the martyrs that died for you, for me, for this country will haunt us forever."

External links

• Tribute Press release issued by Ruairí Ó Brádaigh
  Ruairí Ó Brádaigh
  Ruairí Ó Brádaigh is an Irish republican. He is a former chief of staff of the Irish Republican Army , former president of Sinn Féin and former president of Republican Sinn Féin.-Early life:...
  
   on the death of Máire Drumm.
• Mural Directory CAIN Web Service (Conflict Archive on the Internet) - Mural Directory
• MÁIRE mp3