Title: Critical Reflections on the Role of Policing in Child Protection in Ireland.
Summary:
I spent over 30 months involved in a large-scale national audit of the use of police powers to remove children into care in Ireland. This project was commissioned by An Garda Síochána (Ireland's national police force) in response to critical findings on racial profiling against that police organisation when a number of blonde Romani children were removed from their families by police (a direct fallout from the 'Maria' case in Greece'). This audit was led by Ireland's Special Rapporteur on Child Protection, and its findings received a significant amount of national news media and political attention.
For my presentation, I will give a broad overview of the project: including the background to the audit, the methodology involved, the findings, the strategy used by the police in releasing the findings, the political response, and how the media and political class ignored key findings in the area of race and class.
Speaker Biography:
Cian is a DPhil candidate in Criminology at Wadham College. His doctoral research is exploring contemporary police communications and police-media relations in the UK, in light of the Leveson and Filkin Reports, and the development of new media technologies. It employs ethnographic methodologies, over two years of fieldwork in local newsrooms and police organisations in England and Wales. This project is supervised by Professor Ian Loader, and supported by an ESRC +3 studentship, and a Mitchell-RCUK scholarship.
Prior to undertaking the DPhil, Cian completed the BCL at Wadham College, and the LLB at Trinity College Dublin. In the past few years, he has also worked on various research projects in the areas of restorative justice, sexual violence, child protection, and policing policy and practice.
Cian has been the recipient of numerous academic scholarships and awards, including the Hackney BCL Scholarship at Wadham College, the Henry Hamilton Hunter Prize for graduating top of his LLB class, and was also elected to the prestigious Foundation Scholarship at Trinity College Dublin.
Before beginning his academic life, Cian trained and worked as a stone mason, specialising in architectural stone cutting, carving and restoration.
This seminar is part of the Policing Discussion Group. Tea, coffee, and biscuits will be provided.
