Jennifer McCann (born 1 March 1960) is an Irish republican former politician in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

, who was elected in 2007 to the Northern Ireland Assembly as a

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...

member for Belfast West. She resigned from the Assembly in December 2016.

Early life

McCann was born in the Twinbrook area of

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, and was friends with

Bobby Sands Robert Gerard Sands ( ga, Roibeárd Gearóid Ó Seachnasaigh; 9 March 1954 – 5 May 1981) was a member (and leader in the Maze prison) of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) who died on hunger strike while imprisoned at HM Prison M ...

and his sister

Bernadette Bernadette is a French name, a female form of the name Bernard, which means "brave bear". Notable persons with the name include: People * Bernadette (singer) (born 1959), Dutch singer * Bernadette Allen (born 1956), American foreign service of ...

. She joined the republican movement as a schoolgirl, becoming a member of

Cumann na mBan Cumann na mBan (; literally "The Women's Council" but calling themselves The Irishwomen's Council in English), abbreviated C na mB, is an Irish republican women's paramilitary organisation formed in Dublin on 2 April 1914, merging with and d ...

then joining the

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reu ...

aged 17. McCann was arrested aged 20, after shooting a Royal Ulster Constabulary police officer, and subsequently sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment.

Political career

McCann was released from prison after serving just over ten years of her sentence, and began working for Sinn Féin in the POW Department and Women's Department. She is active on a number of projects in her community, including the Sally Gardens Community Centre Committee, the Safer Neighbourhoods Project, the Colin Community Festival, and the Falls Community Council's Community Drugs Programme.

Personal life

McCann is married to former IRA prisoner Rab Kerr, with whom she has three children.

References

Sources

Bobby Sands was a great role model – he was never arrogant
Sunday Tribune (archived), 12 November 2007
Northern Ireland Assembly West Belfast MLAs
Stratagem NI 1960 births Female members of the Northern Ireland Assembly Irish republicans Irish republicans imprisoned under Prevention of Terrorism Acts Junior ministers of the Northern Ireland Assembly (since 1999) Living people Northern Ireland MLAs 2007–2011 Northern Ireland MLAs 2011–2016 Northern Ireland MLAs 2016–2017 Politicians from Belfast Provisional Irish Republican Army members Sinn Féin MLAs 21st-century women politicians from Northern Ireland Cumann na mBan members {{SinnFéin-politician-stub