Meet Northern Ireland's first openly gay MLA - David Ford Alliance replacement John Blair |

Contents:

• STORMONT'S FIRST OPENLY GAY MLA JOHN BLAIR 'HAPPY TO BE BREAKG DOWN BARRIERS BUT HAS A JOB TO DO'
• NORTHERN IRELAND SET TO HAVE S FIRST OPENLY GAY MLA
• MEET NORTHERN IRELAND'S FIRST OPENLY GAY MLA - DAVID FORD ALLIANCE REPLACEMENT JOHN BLAIR
• Eó TENNYSON HOP TO BE FIRST OPENLY GAY MLA

STORMONT'S FIRST OPENLY GAY MLA JOHN BLAIR 'HAPPY TO BE BREAKG DOWN BARRIERS BUT HAS A JOB TO DO'

Northern Ireland's first openly gay Assembly member has said he is more than happy to be breakg down Blair has been selected as the new Alliance MLA for South will replace David Ford, the former party lear, who is steppg down at the end of this while the 52-year-old Glengormley man's selectn as the first openly gay MLA was big news yterday, he hop won't be years to e.

NORTHERN IRELAND SET TO HAVE S FIRST OPENLY GAY MLA

"I'm grateful for that, I'm happy to take the qutns for now, but the important thg is that I will have a job to do as an MLA, not as a 'gay MLA', " he said.

MEET NORTHERN IRELAND'S FIRST OPENLY GAY MLA - DAVID FORD ALLIANCE REPLACEMENT JOHN BLAIR

History will be ma later this week when Alrman John Blair be the North’s first openly gay MLA.

John Blair wh Alliance lear Naomi Long and David FordThe replacement for the retirg David Ford will be Stormont's first openly gay MLA, the Alliance party has said. 'I me out when I was 19 and before I did I wonred if my sexualy might hold me back om certa thgs life'Eó Tennyson says homophobic and sectarian haters won’t stop his drive to get to week the 23-year-old Alliance Assembly hopeful was subjected to abe om a man who went to nsirable effort to track him down his r jt to abe him for phg an electn leaflet through his reported the barrage of foul-mouthed abe to the police, he says he was taken back by the vrl but his ‘hater’ didn’t make clear if was his sexualy or his relign or jt a pathologil hatred of the lour yellow that raised his Eó, already an acplished uncillor Armagh Cy, Banbridge and Craigavon, has had no shortage of homophobic hate mail tellg him he’s “disgtg” and even suggtns of where he uld obta gay nversn ’s also been qutned about his relign, wh one woman lookg at his name on his leaflet and askg: “Well, you’re clearly not a Prod are you?

Eó TENNYSON HOP TO BE FIRST OPENLY GAY MLA

“It’s important for young people om the gay muny to see people like them reflected society, pecially for young people bee giv them hope. “Seeg gay and lbian people beg elected mak you feel clud while havg people elected wh different lived experienc leads to better out for everyone I thk. ”Read moreNorthern Ireland may be a more tolerant place for the LGBTQ+ muny than was a quarter of a century ago when the Good Friday Agreement was signed but we’ve yet to elect an openly gay or lbian ndidate to Stormont.