Commentary: Remembering the McDonald sisters

Minneapolis, MN – The peace movement in Minnesota lost two fierce fighters for peace this fall: Brigid and Jane McDonald. Brigid McDonald died on October 2, 2026 and Jane McDonald died on November 1, 2026.

Brigid and Jane were part of an iconic group of four sisters who became nuns with the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Carondelet. The McDonald sisters were even featured in a 2019 play that premiered at the History Theater in Saint Paul titled Sisters of Peace. The play chronicled their story of leaving the farm, becoming nuns and then peace activists.

During the war on Iraq and afterwards, the sisters were consistent protesters on the Lake Street Bridge at regular Wednesday vigils and were known to sing anti-war songs at protests and events.

I was on the Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) board in the 2010s and served with Brigid. I frequently brought my young daughter with me to board meetings and Brigid was her favorite person to sit next to. They would giggle and color together through the meeting.

Before she retired, Brigid had been a first and second-grade teacher. She had a light that drew children to her. She made my daughter feel like she was welcome in the movement, and for that I will forever be grateful.

I know I wasn’t the only mom that feels this way. Thistle Parker-Hartog, who has kids around the same age as mine, and I were recently remembering Brigid. She told me that at any protest she brought her boys to, Brigid always went out of her way to make them feel welcome as well.

When I asked my daughter Audrey what she most fondly remembers about Brigid, she said, “I remember how Brigid would respond to people flipping us off from their cars while we were at protests. She would say that they were making half of a peace sign and that they were ‘almost there’. She approached every person and situation with this same type of positivity.”

My favorite memory of Brigid is from a flotilla protest we participated in on Lake Minnetonka during the war on Iraq. We wanted to protest then-Vice President Dick Cheney’s fundraiser, but knew that the Secret Service would block access to the house. Roger Cuthbertson organized two boats to protest the war and blast chants at the fundraiser from the lake.

Brigid was one of the ten people I spent that day with. She kept our spirits up by chanting, singing, dancing and even playing music. My favorite memory was the time she asked one of the Secret Service agents harassing us from their boat if his mother knew what he did for a living, and wasn’t he ashamed of himself for protecting a war criminal like Dick Cheney?

A month after Brigid died, so did her sister Jane, the last of the peace sisters to pass away.

Sarah Martin, a long-time board member of WAMM, recently reflected about Jane. “Jane was at the heart and soul of our movements,” said Martin. “She totally empathized with the pain of poverty, oppression and war, and was unique in her ability to express these feelings and thoughts eloquently and passionately.”

Kim DeFranco, who organized with the Welfare Rights Committee in the 1990s, reflected, “Both Brigid and Jane will be remembered as social‑justice Catholic nuns and as women whose faith moved them to stand with the people. The McDonald sisters were steadfast allies to those fighting for economic and social justice; they were a powerful presence in every struggle. In the 1990s, the Welfare Rights Committee, a group of low‑income women organizing for economic justice, was honored to have the McDonald sisters at our side. They joined our protests, standing at the doors of the Minnesota Senate and House, chanting, lobbying, and refusing to let lawmakers ignore the lives of poor and working‑class families. Their legacy is one of courage, solidarity, and love for the people.”

Recently, my wife and I were surprised to realize that we have younger members on the WAMM board who had never met Brigid or Jane. That helped remind us that they had been struggling with their health for some time. They weren’t able to be on the streets for Palestine during the recent upsurge of protests, but I know they would have been had they been able to.

As Irish Americans, they were feisty and always stood against U.S. imperialism. I think it’s important to recognize the inspiration that Brigid and Jane McDonald were, and to continue their optimistic vision for the future as we continue to organize against U.S. wars.

Meredith Aby is the executive director of Women Against Military Madness, based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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Source: https://fightbacknews.org/commentary-remembering-the-mcdonald-sisters?pk_campaign=rss-feed