About This Campaign
WHO WE ARE
NobodyCouldHearTheMusic.com is a public campaign supported by survivors of institutional abuse, artists, civic advocates, and members of the Irish public who believe that continuing to perform under the name of The Artane Band and wearing the uniform causes real harm.
We are not against music.
We are not against the young musicians who play today.
We are not against the community of Artane.
We are calling for one thing:
Change the name ‘The Artane Band’ and change the uniform.
WHY THIS MATTERS
The Artane Band was originally formed within the Artane Industrial School - a place now known to have been a site of systemic child abuse, as documented in the Ryan Report.
Many of the children forced to perform in the original band were also being beaten, exploited, and raped behind the institution’s walls.
That history cannot be undone. But it must not be celebrated.
Today, the Artane Band performs at national events, under the same name and in the same uniform. A name that carries the pain of generations of survivors.
Aisling Walsh, Filmmaker
“The Artane Band needs a name change as it is a constant reminder to survivors of the trauma - the violence and the brutality they experienced at The Artane Industrial School.”
WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR
This campaign is not calling for the band to be disbanded.
We are asking for it to be renamed, re-uniformed, and freed from its association with institutional violence.
Change the name.
Change the uniform.
Stop the silence.
Let the music continue, but not under a name that reopens old wounds.
Facts that should not be ignored
The Artane Industrial School operated from 1870–1969.
More than 15,000 boys were sent there, often for no crime.
The Ryan Report documented decades of systemic abuse at the school.
The Artane Band was formed inside that institution.
Some band members were simultaneously enduring serious physical and sexual abuse.
In 2010, a dedicated Garda investigation into Artane-related abuse was launched and later shut down without explanation. There were no convictions.
Survivors still live with the trauma. The name still re-traumatises them.
