DERRY-born civil rights campaigner and writer Nell McCafferty has received an honorary degree from University College Cork for her “unparalleled contribution” to Irish public life.
The 72-year-old playwright, journalist and feminist activist was among four people recognised yesterday to mark ‘Boole Day’ – the birth date of George Boole, the philosopher and mathematician who taught at the university in the mid-19th century.
UCC praised McCafferty’s “powerful voice in movements that have had a transformative impact in Irish society, including the feminist movement, campaigns for civil rights and for the marginalised and victims of injustice”.
Ms McCafferty, whose 2004 autobiography Nell recounts her life from the streets of the Bogside to her time penning her influential column for the Irish Times, joins fellow UUC honorary graduates including footballer Roy Keane and actor Pierce Brosnan.
Also recognised yesterday was RTE director general Dee Forbes, Silicon Valley marketing guru Regis McKenna and businessman Kieran Calnan.
