Following on from the 2:1 Marriage Equality Win. There are other contentious issues to be dealt with,
one in particular is the State allowed ban on gay teachers in certain religious-run schools and the
strengthening up of transgender rights that citizen equality operates through all levels of society.
Thus senior officials from three key groups behind the yes campaign outlined the next steps in what they have stressed is an equality drive wider than same sex-marriage at a press conference in response to the decision to amend the Constitution.
Speaking to reporters in Dublin, representatives of Yes Equality, Marriage Equality, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, and the Gay and Lesbian Network expressed their gratitude to the entire country for the 62% yes vote.
However, with a general election just around the corner and political parties seeking to “reap the rewards”, they said now was the time to push for similar progress on other issues.
“I am very proud this campaign was headlined by equality, but we have unfinished business. We still have legalised discrimination of LGBT teachers in schools with a religious ethos, that needs to be amended,” said ICCL executive director Mark Kelly.
Section 37 of the Equal Status Acts allows for religious-run schools to effectively ban gay teachers if it is felt their personal life contradicts the facility’s ethos, a situation teacher unions have consistently warned is discriminatory.
The unrelated transgender recognition bill which is going through the Oireachtas is based on a warning Ireland is in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights as it does not recognise the new identities of people who have undergone gender reassignment. While campaigners say progress has been made, they believe the current wording will still discriminate.
Speaking at the same press conference, campaigners noted the “momentous” events of this weekend, with campaign co-director Brian Sheehan saying it has “reshaped forever the Republic in which we live”.
GLEN chair Kieran Rose said young gay people who may be “isolated or bullied” in school “now know 1.2m people have voted to back them up” and noted the view is not limited to “liberal” parts of Dublin.
He said the public vote “is a fantastic beacon of hope to countries that are now what we were like in the 1970s and 1980s” and that Ireland can become a world leader on equal rights.
Agreed but its a bigger issue which is about separating the church and state. Ireland has voted to say that it goes against the teaching of the catholic church so so it's time that church and state were two separate things.
ReplyDeleteIf the Catholic Church in Ireland was a business I would be bringing in the big guns to reposition itself (thats the marketer in me though). Interesting that when its on its knee over the weekend there is a video clip doing the rounds of a priest denying travellers access to Sunday mass because they weren't dressed properly where you can see in the video that the lady in question was actually dressed nicer than alot of "good" catholics who attend each week. Bad PR Father!!
Well said Grace and thank you very much for sharing :)
DeleteI hope that this is just the start of equality for all citizens!
ReplyDeleteYes I agree with you and we need to keep up the focus !
DeleteAn emotive subject, equality for various sections of humanity, whether it be race, gender etc, will always be an issue as long as draconian viewpoints are deeply entrenched in the human mindset. Perhaps if we stopped using labels such as gay, black, catholic, christian, muslim, racist etc perhaps we could then start accepting each other for who we are and not what we are? Just my rambling viewpoint.
ReplyDeleteI comprehend all that you have written John and agree, however we are getting there.
DeleteA very gratifying result and kudos to all who made it happen.
ReplyDeleteThank you Joanne, we only did what was right.
DeleteI too agree with what John says - but having worked with black youths for many years in my teaching days, I know that these things don't happen overnight. One day it should be like that - and when I once expressed these views about black people to a black lawyer I knew he said it was still important to see them as black - that day, when we are all equal - be it race, colour, creed, sexuality or anything else, has sadly by nomeans arrived yet.
ReplyDeleteQuite correct Anne, which is why we have to plugging away :)
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