There was a new flower shop on 110 Grafton St this Valentine’s Day. The ‘Dead Flower Shop’ might look like a normal flower shop on the outside but on the inside, it tells a different story.
The initiative set up by Allianz and Women’s Aid saw a flower shop transform. The inside was filled with dead flowers.
They represented and paid tribute to the 247 women who have tragically been taken under violent circumstances in Ireland since 1996. There were also 8 bouquets designed to represent women who have died at the hands of their current or former partner. Allianz and Women’s Aid are asking to ‘Bring home more than just flowers this Valentine’s Day- Bring a promise to stand up for women’
Sadly, the number of violent deaths for women is on the rise every year in Ireland. Many women feel that the men of Ireland aren’t educated enough on the subject or don’t care enough. Some men may also feel that there is no way for them to fix the problem, so a blind eye is turned to the tragic situation.
The Flower Shop was launched after the Ally Action List which is an online resource that helps address the issue of violence against women. It offers a guide to men to help them understand how to be a male ally you can see details here (http://www.womensaid.ie/men/)
Many discussions are being had around Ireland on how we can fix this devastating problem. Victims’ families are working to put a stop to this femicide in Ireland like the family of Jenifer Poole whose life was tragically taken in 2021 by her ex-partner. Jennie’s brother Jason Poole has been campaigning for Jennie’s Law since her tragic death. He’s fighting to expose the abusers and with “Jennie’s Law’’. ‘‘It would create a register that would give the Gardaí the power to be able to inform somebody when asked if their partner has a violent history”
This law has been passed in the UK and is known as ‘Clare’s Law’ and according to numbers Clare’s law has been successful in reducing the number of domestic violence in the UK.
Initiatives like the Dead Flower Shop are important in shedding some light on a nationwide issue.