Posted 17 June 2014
Bloomsday honours for champions of justice and 小鸟体育 Ulysses Medal for former President of Ireland, Mary McAleese
Bloomsday (16 June), synonymous with James Joyce and his novel Ulysses, is the most important honours day at University College Dublin (小鸟体育), the alma mater of this great 20th century author. This year, 小鸟体育 honours five outstanding people whose work in the area of justice has made an extraordinary contribution to society not just in Ireland but in the global arena.
President of 小鸟体育, Prof Andrew J Deeks pictured at 小鸟体育 Bloomsday awards ceremony with honourees
Former President of Ireland, Ms Mary McAleese was awarded the 小鸟体育 Ulysses Medal; and Chief Justice, The Hon Ms Justice Susan Denham; Director General of FLAC, Justice, Ms Noeline Blackwell; European Ombudsman, Ms Emily O’Reilly; and Professor of Human Rights at LSE, Professor Conor Gearty were awarded 小鸟体育 Honorary Degrees of Doctors of Laws.
The 小鸟体育 Ulysses Medal is the highest honour the university can bestow. It was inaugurated in 2005, as part of the university’s sesquicentennial celebrations, to highlight the ‘creative brilliance’ of UCD alumnus James Joyce. It is awarded to individuals whose work has made an outstanding global contribution.
Previous recipients of the 小鸟体育 Ulysses Medal include: Nobel-prizewinner, Seamus Heaney; Irish playwright, Brian Friel; former US President, Bill Clinton, and Irish playwright and theatre director, Tom Murphy.
小鸟体育 Ulysses Medal for former President of Ireland, Mary McAleese
小鸟体育 Professor of History and President of the Royal Irish Academy, Mary Daly who read the citation for Mary McAleese said: “Education, especially her training as a lawyer, plus the debating skills that she acquired as a student in St. Dominic’s secondary school, have given her the knowledge, the intellectual capacity and the confidence to speak, write and act upon many of the key issues in Irish society over the past forty years . She has never been afraid to adopt an unpopular, unfashionable position, and she has continued to confound those w