A LOCAL area representative for the Labour Party in West Cork, who plans to stand in next year’s local elections, said she will continue to represent her community despite being on the receiving end of online trolls.
Speaking to The Southern Star, mum-of-two Evie Nevin from Clonakilty, who will stand in the Skibbereen Local Election Area, said she was taking a break from X (formerly Twitter) after receiving abuse for pictures she had posted from the recent Labour party think-in.
‘There were some nasty comments posted, so I’m taking a break from it for now, but it’s not going to stop me advocating for the most vulnerable families in West Cork,’ said Evie.
‘I’m also encouraging other women to get involved in politics and while some comments can be brutal, these are coming from only a small minority.’
Evie said the social media platform is not the ‘town hall space’ it used to be, where people shared ideas and discussions. She noticed over the last year it had deteriorated, with more anonymous trolls.
‘I’m not naïve or under any illusion that politicians get abuse but there seems to be double standards when it comes to female politicians and their male counterparts. You will rarely see comments about men’s physical appearance, but women get a different level of abuse. But I don’t want this to deter women from entering local politics. Attack the policy – but not the person.’
As vice-chairperson of Clonakilty Access Group and a committee member of Autism Friendly Clonakilty, she is passionate about representing people with disabilities and autism, and feels housing, the cost of living, and lack of active travel are major issues to be tackled in West Cork.
The party’s selection convention takes place in O’Donovan’s Hotel in Clonakilty on Friday October 13th and leader Ivana Bacik will be present, said Evie. ‘It’s an exciting time for the party and I will be the first Labour candidate to stand in the Skibbereen LEA since 2014.’
