Sinead O'Connor (b. 1966) is now known as Shuhada Sadquat. She is an Irish singer-songwriter. Her first album, The Lion and the Cobra, was a hit after it was released in 1987, achieving gold record status and earning O'Connor a Best Female Rock Vocal Performance Grammy nomination. Sinead O'Connor was born in County Dublin, Ireland. She was sent to one of the infamous Magdalene Laundries when she was caught shoplifting at the age of 15 and later wrote about the girls and women there "washing priests' clothes in sinks with cold water and bars of soap" for no pay. Sinead was in the Laundry for 18 months.

In 1992, and as a protest against the stories of child abuse by Catholic clergy coming to light, O'Connor tore up the picture of then Pope John Paul II on Saturday Night Live.

At the time, Sinead was vilified for her actions, but she was later vindicated as more stories of abuse surfaced.