Dublin in the pink

I was strolling down Bachelor’s Walk in Dublin last Thursday lunchtime when I took this picture.

Less then a week after the Equality Commission in Northern Ireland published research showing very high levels of homophobia and other prejudice in NI, the Capital was preparing for its biggest ever Pride event which took place on Saturday.

Today writing in the Irish Times, Eoin Collins, the Director the Irish Gay and Lesbian Equality Network, lays out his stall on the issue of Gay Marriage in Ireland and the current government proposals for civil partnerships.

Opinion polls over the last number of years have consistently shown more than 80 per cent of the public have supported legal recognition for same-sex couples.

The Civil Partnership Bill follows extensive public discussion and analysis on the issues in the media, in both houses of the Oireachtas and by a range of policy bodies, including the Government Working Group on Domestic Partnership (the Colley Group), the Law Reform Commission and the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution.

Some of the most striking aspects of the 2007 Dáil debate on civil unions for same-sex couples were the personal stories which politicians from all parties told about the importance of legal recognition for individual lesbian and gay people. The dominant theme of same-sex partnership ceremonies, noted one TD, was happiness, joy and celebration, not just for the couple but also for their family, friends, neighbours and work colleagues.

It is heartening to see this debate taking place in such a constructive environment south of the border. Many in the gay community will feel let down that the government’s proposals do not go far enough but they will also feel able to lobby publicly and speak out loudly for a stronger Bill without fear of attack or rejection by society.

There are loads of North – South divides on this island. Many have nothing to do with religion or politics. The fact that the Dublin, an increasingly liberal city,  can fly Gay Pride flags on in its best lamp posts and Belfast cannot is maybe as good an example as any of one.