Aftermath: My Story

In July 2019, Bláthnaid Raleigh travelled from Mullingar to Galway to join in the festivities of the Galway Arts Festival. She and her friends found themselves in the company of another group from Mullingar. The hours went by as pub gave way to afterparty in a nearby house. There, this night like any other took the most sinister of turns when Jonathan Moran raped Bláthnaid. Back in their hometown, Bláthnaid would spend the next five years living with the effects; her attacker, unable to be identified for legal reasons, continued his life working, socialising and playing rugby. Meanwhile, Bláthnaid’s brother quietly left Mullingar Rugby Club because of Moran, suffering abuse from former clubmates for transferring and even having to face off against his sister’s rapist in a match. Aftermath is the story of the impact rape had on Bláthnaid’s life and the wider effects on her family and community. It is also testimony to one woman’s determination not to allow the actions of one predator to define her life.