One year on - celebrating the Marriage Referendum

One year. One year since the world changed. One year since Ireland changed. Over the course of one weekend in May 2015, Ireland had shaken off the aura of parochial misanthropy that had blanketed the country like a grave shroud ever since the foundation of the state. It was on this weekend that the Irish voted overwhelmingly to recognise the right of homosexual couples to marry, and even enshrine that in the constitution of Ireland. I still remember that weekend like it was yesterday. Even though I couldn’t follow the count as closely as I had wanted to, friends from Germany had come over to visit, it was hard to escape the electric atmosphere in Ireland that weekend. It was truly “electric Ireland”!

Celebrating the one year anniversary of the Marriage Equality Referendum in Bishop Lucey Park in Cork.

To be frank, I wasn't so sure about the success of the referendum when I stumbled upon the kickoff rally of one of the Yes campaign groups in Dublin earlier in 2015.

Although a few backward minded individuals desperately tried to torpedo the result of the marriage referendum with questionable pseudo-constitutional arguments, there was nothing that could stop the change now rolling through the country. And what a fundamental change it was. While Ireland had not been the first country to legalise full marriage between homosexual couples, it was the first nation to do so with a popular referendum, catapulting this tiny nation on the edge of Europe to the forefront of even the most progressive nations in the world. After the pseudolegal challenges had been deservedly thrown out, the government made its move and passed the necessary legislation to ensure the constitutionally guaranteed rights would find their way into the statute books.

And now, one year on from that momentous weekend in May, the rainbow flags are once again out in force. However, not as a form of protest or as part of a civil rights movement. Nowadays, the rainbow flag flies above Ireland as a proud equal to the flags of the counties and many different cultures calling this island their home. It is time to celebrate the first anniversary of the referendum, and the fact that despite all that has changed, nothing has changed. Yes, you read that right. Much to the surprise and chagrin  of the opponents of the referendum, the country is still standing, and society isn’t collapsing. Indeed, with 412 homosexual couples getting married since the referendum, it is safe to say that these marriages have become bureaucratic normality.

And isn’t that what it all was about? To be treated as equals? To have the same rights, but also the same responsibilities and the same bureaucratic tedium as the rest of the country? To ensure that who you love, who you are attracted to, is no longer a reason for derision, insults, and even legal discrimination? To me, that type of equality is the ultimate pinnacle of emancipation, to simply be accepted as who you are, without preconditions or fear. 

The celebrations in Cork’s Bishop Lucey Park illustrated this paradigm shift perfectly. I hadn’t read anything about these upcoming celebrations when I stumbled upon them this afternoon, but the atmosphere was very relaxed and welcoming, and while some of the choice of music was unusual (Just what is it with the Barrack Street band and “Anchors aweigh”?), it felt like a street festival rather than a victory celebration. The visitors clearly showed that, with people of all pages milling about, talking, and generally enjoying the afternoon out in the park. There is, I might add, a delicious irony in the fact that this celebration took place in a park named after a bishop, given the church’s fervent opposition to the referendum.

So, all is rosy, or rather rainbow in Ireland? Not quite, unfortunately. There are still pockets in the population that are fervently homophobic, and that will not hesitate to make their feelings known. The comment sections of any Irish newspaper are a great example of that, as are schools, unfortunately. Children can be cruel, and will often not hesitate to pounce on anyone that seems different, so it is vital that schools and the government continue to tackle homophobia and homophobic bullying head-on!

And then, there’s the other great battleground in Ireland these days, abortion. The 8th amendment to the Irish Constitution equates the life of the unborn child to that of the mother, and effectively outlaws abortions. While provisions have been made to ensure that they are possible in case of mortal danger for the mother following the harrowing case of Savita Hallapanavar back in 2012, women still need to fly to the UK to have these procedures done, a situation which I personally find disgusting and deplorable. 

Now to be honest, I do not believe that I have the right to tell any woman what to do with her body or her unborn child, that is the decision of that person alone. However, I also believe that the state has no right to tell a woman what to do with her body, and to impose its will on her, especially when that state’s argument is built solely on religious mumbo-jumbo! Over the course of one weekend in May, Ireland has demonstrated that it is able to move beyond the indoctrination of a foreign men-only cult and its often morally questionable leadership in Ireland. Now, it is time to take the lead again, and ensure that women are the full masters of their fate!