Do Penance or Perish: Magdalen Asylums in Ireland - Frances Finnegan

Frances Finnegan traces the development of Ireland's Magdalen Asylums—homes that were founded in the mid-nineteenth century for the detention of prostitutes undergoing reform. Put to work without pay in adjoining laundries, these women were subject to penance, harsh discipline, enforced silence, and prayer. The inmates of these asylums were discouraged-and many forcibly prevented-from leaving and sometimes were detained for life.

Forbidden to mention their past lives, their children taken away, the inmates themselv Their hair was cropped, and they were made to wear drab and shapeless clothing.