The Mayor of South Dublin, Cllr. Peter Kavanagh, unveiled a commemorative stone dedicated to the memory of former Health Minister Dr. Noël Browne and the women and men who fought to eradicate tuberculosis in Ireland outside Peamount Hospital, once a TB sanitorium. “It is fitting,” said Mayor Kavanagh, “that we mark this occasion as we emerge from a national health emergency that forced the country to come together for the greater good. It calls to mind the tremendous effort Dr. Browne and his colleagues made in eradicating tuberculosis.”
Also speaking at the event were Cllr. Kieran Mahon, SOL/PBP, who proposed the motion to honour Dr. Browne; James Dunne, the local resident who first approached Cllr. Mahon; and Dr. Browne’s daughter Ruth.
“It is also appropriate that this event should happen during Pride Month,” said Mayor Kavanagh, “as Dr. Browne was the first parliamentarian to call for the decriminalisation of homosexuality and was one of the few politicians to attend the opening of the Hirschfeld Centre in Dublin. In an era where being liberal was seen as dangerously radical, Noël Browne was a genuine progressive, and his legacy is a blueprint for Irish society to continue the work he started.”
Pictured: Cllr Peter Kavanagh Mayor of South Dublin, James Dunne, Ruth Browne and Nena Browne with Jincy Mathew, TD Emer Higgins, Cllr Deirdre Donovan, Cllr. William Carey, Cllr. Teresa Costello, Cllr. Derren Ó Brádaigh, Cllr Francis Timmons, Cllr. Kieran Mahon , Cllr Alan Edge, Cllr Charlie O’Connor, Cllr. Pamela Kearns, Cllr Joanna Tuffy, Cllr Eoin O’Broin and SDCC Staff at the unveiling of the plaque in memory of Dr. Noel Browne (former Minister for Health) and all those who fought for the eradication of tuberculosis.
Pic: Ben Ryan
