Successful and Inspiring Sheena Campbell Lecture held in QUB

Friday the 16th October 2009 marks the 17th Anniversary of Sheena Campbell death. Sheena was just 29 years old when she was gunned down by a loyalist death squad working in collusion with the British Government.

Sheena was a member of Sinn Féin and had stood as a candidate for that party in the Upper Bann area in a Westminster Parliamentary by-election in 1990. To mark Sheena’s death, the Sheena Campbell Sinn Féin Cumann in Queens University Belfast organised a memorial lecture on her life.



Joint First Minister, and Sinn Féin Chief Negotiator, Martin McGuinness was due to speak, however given the current climate and the urgent talks looking to secure the devolution of Policing and Justice he was unable to make it at the last minute. Stepping in at late notice was Sinn Féin MLA for Upper Bann and the Party’s Assembly group leader – John O’Dowd.

John knew Sheena, not only as a Sinn Féin activist, but also as a friend. John spoke truthfully and emotionally about his memories of Sheena, and talked about some of the events he attended with her. John then opened the floor to a Q&A session, which saw a broad range of questions put forward with topics including; how to make Republicanism more relevant to young people, the devolution of Policing and Justice and to Sinn Féin’s performance in the 26 Counties.

Following the talk, John presented the Campbell family with a bronze statue of a woman with a bin lid, representing the long standing role women have had in the struggle for Irish Freedom.

Speaking after the event Grace Lynch of the Sheena Campbell Cumann said:

“Today’s event was a great success with over 100 students attending the lecture. This is evidence that after 17 years, the legacy of Sheena Campbell is still alive. Many attending the lecture today were only children when Sheena was murdered, however, the large number of young people present today illustrates the eagerness of people to learn about our history, and look for ways to ensure that such things don’t happen again.”

“Sheena is an inspiration to me, she was a young woman with a small child, however she still found the time to work on her degree, and at the same time continue to drive the struggle for Irish Freedom forward. Sheena Campbell gave her life for a dream not yet realised. It is our duty, and the duty of every Republican to strive every day to make that dream a reality.”