Resilience Reflections

I sobbed as I listened to the iconic hit “Nothing Compares to You” upon learning about the death of Sinead O'Connor last week.  My emotional response was not only because her incomparable voice always moved me but feeling a deep loss of a social change champion who persevered despite those who loathed her.  Listening to the rawness ofher voice, a mixture or Irish lilt and raw soul, sent shivers through me. Her singing and songwriting were infused by a difficult childhood, a defiance of patriarchal shackles, disdain of the church that harmed many, and personal struggles with mental health. 

Often misunderstood, O'Connor bucked conformity throughout her life. She dearly paid the price when she spoke out against the Catholic Church in the most public and damaging way, immediately losing many followers. She refused to succumb to societal beauty standards and ‘selling’ herself as something she was not and could not be. She became a pariah and battled personal demons, yet she remained a staunch advocate for many. To say I idolized her is not true. She was flawed, as we all are, and she made choices and said things that I don’t agree with, particularly pitting one religious group over another a few years ago.  That said,  she was a brilliant soul who sought to make the world better. When I listen to her gutsy voice today, it continues to reflect brutal, honest, human emotion, just as it did over 33 years ago.

A testament that one can be both broken and brave,  Sinead was repeatedly resilient. Her songs often hinted at remaining steadfast, uncompromising, and a force of resistance for those not yet liberated from oppression. The 1987 song, Mandinka, from The Lion and the Cobra album speaks about the Mandinka people of West Africa and their struggle against slavery. At the core of the lyrics is our need to acknowledge marginalized people and what has happened to them, in order to be in solidarity with them. With her lyrics, “ I do know Mandika…. “I do know, Mandika”… she acknowledges the pain and suffering of an enslaved people simply by that phrase. In the lyrics,  “And they say, See how the glass is raised?" I have refused to take part I told them, Drink something new, Please let me pull something through,” she is expressing her refusal to accept the status quo and capitulate to something that is not right. The song, Troy, at first glimpse seems to be about a lover,  but the lyrics are actually a metaphor for how she felt about her mother, who was extremely abusive. She sings about coming back stronger from that experience, indicated in the words “But I will rise, And I will return, The Phoenix from the flame, I have learned I will rise, And you'll see me return.”

O'Connor was an advocate for social change who railed against institutional oppression and is a reminder to persevere and be true to one's self despite the obstacles. I look forward to hearing more about the lives she touched.  Her beautiful music created a platform where she could serve many; victims of domestic violence, survivors of sexual abuse, those suffering with AIDS, and the LBGTQ+ community. She had recently paid off medical debt for impoverished Irish citizens, just a few weeks before her death, and she never forgot that she came from very little. She will be remembered as voice of strength for those without a voice, a voice of resistance against the institutions that bind,  and a voice of resilience when things fall apart.  Sinead's life reflects our common human needs, which include our need to:

• Be true to ourselves and not conform to what others want us to be.
• Speak up and take a stand for what we believe in.
• Accept and love ourselves rather than let others define our value.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Rest in peace, Sinead.  Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.