Irish voters make history gay marriage referendum | Ireland | The Guardian

Contents:

• IRELAND BE FIRST UNTRY TO LEGALISE GAY MARRIAGE BY POPULAR VOTE
• IRELAND VOT TO APPROVE GAY MARRIAGE, PUTTG COUNTRY VANGUARD
• LATVIA BE 7TH NATN TO BE LED BY AN OPENLY GAY HEAD OF STATE
• IRISH VOTERS MAKE HISTORY GAY MARRIAGE REFERENDUM
• IRELAND ON URSE TO BE FIRST UNTRY TO LEGALISE GAY MARRIAGE BY POPULAR VOTE
• IRELAND LEGALIZ GAY MARRIAGE HISTORIC VOTE
• CALIFORNIA STILL HAS AN ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE LAW ON THE BOOKS. VOTERS ULD REMOVE NEXT YEAR
• HISTORIC VOTE IRELAND ON GAY MARRIAGE
• IRELAND ULD MAKE HISTORY WH GAY MARRIAGE VOTE
• VATIN SAYS IRELAND GAY MARRIAGE VOTE IS 'FEAT FOR HUMANY'

IRELAND BE FIRST UNTRY TO LEGALISE GAY MARRIAGE BY POPULAR VOTE

Ireland has voted by a huge majory to legalise same-sex marriage, beg the first untry the world to do so by popular vote a move hailed as a social revolutn and weled around the 62% of the Irish Republic’s electorate voted favour of gay marriage. The huge Y vote marks another tone Ireland’s journey towards a more liberal, secular of an electorate of more than 3 ln, 1, 201, 607 backed gay marriage, while 734, 300 voters said No.

Directly addrsg Ireland’s gay muny, taoiseach Enda Kenny said the rult meant that “a majory of people this republic have stood up for them [those the gay muny]”.

IRELAND VOT TO APPROVE GAY MARRIAGE, PUTTG COUNTRY VANGUARD

”Health mister Leo Varadkar, who this year me out as the untry’s first openly gay mister, said the mpaign had been “almost like a social revolutn” social transformatn of the untry was on display the grounds of Dubl Castle, former seat of Brish le Ireland and the se of the natnal unt for a referendum that was unthkable jt two s ago – was only 1993 that homosexualy was crimalised. The rabow lours of the ternatnal gay movement l up the 18th-century bbled urtyard amid glor sunshe on Saturday afternoon as up to 2, 000 gay activists celebrated a roundg Fe Gael-Labour aln had asked voters to amend their 78-year-old nstutn. The overall turnout of 61% was higher than the poll to ratify the 1998 Good Friday agreement, when 56% of the electorate me out to pro-reform vote was also energised by an 11th-hour movement lled #hometovote, which ed social media to enurage young Irish expatriat to get back to Ireland time to first nstuency that clared favour of a Y vote was the ral Sligo/North Lerim, which backed gay marriage by 54% to 46%.

Photograph: Clodagh Kilyne/Getty Imag Photograph: Clodagh Kilyne/Getty ImagAs the first nfirmed rult was announced, veteran Irish gay rights mpaigner Senator David Norris arrived at Dubl Castle, where he was mobbed as a hero by a younger generatn of gay activists. The world expert on Jam Joyce had pursued urt s all the way to the European urt of human rights, forcg a prev Irish ernment to crimalise homosexualy cheers and applse om the crowd gathered the urtyard, and wh tears his ey, Norris said the rult would spire others across the pla.

“It’s clear that, if the referendum is an affirmatn of the views of young people, the church has a huge task ont of , ” Mart pro-gay marriage vote ptured headl around the world, wh celebri praisg the oute. ”Back the sunshe at Dubl Castle, the crowds gave a rock-star wele to another proment Irish gay spokman, the drag queen and human rights activist Panti Bliss, also known as Rory O’ Bliss aka Rory O’Neill leads the celebratns.

LATVIA BE 7TH NATN TO BE LED BY AN OPENLY GAY HEAD OF STATE

”But while the thoands the Castle leapt for joy, wept and waved rabow flags triumph when the overall natnal vote was announced, there was a remr om the gay muny Northern Ireland that the stggle for equaly is far om over even on the Boyd, of the gay rights group the Rabow Project Belfast, remd the world that there was still a ban on gay marriage north of the borr. AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTA uple at Dubl Castle on McQuillan/Getty ImagSli 1 of 10 A uple at Dubl Castle on McQuillan/Getty ImagMay 23, 2015DUBLIN — Ireland beme the first natn to approve same-sex marriage by a popular vote, sweepg asi the opposn of the Roman Catholic Church a roundg victory Saturday for the gay rights movement and placg the untry at the vanguard of social the fal ballots unted, the vote was 62 percent favor of legalizg same-sex marriage, and 38 percent opposed. At the same time, homosexualy is illegal across much of the Middle East and gay rights are unr renewed attack Rsia and parts of rults showed wi and ep support for a measure that had domated public disurse and dner-table nversatn the months before the vote on Friday.

IRISH VOTERS MAKE HISTORY GAY MARRIAGE REFERENDUM

”ViotranscripttranscriptIreland Legaliz Gay MarriageIreland has bee the first natn to approve same-sex marriage by a popular vote, sweepg asi opposn om the Roman Catholic Church a roundg victory for the gay rights movement. NaIreland has bee the first natn to approve same-sex marriage by a popular vote, sweepg asi opposn om the Roman Catholic Church a roundg victory for the gay rights olr activists, the moment marked a profound evolutn for their untry. For the world, suggted how far the gay rights movement has e, to make such a signifint step a untry wh a storied history as a relig stronghold.

“Throughout my youth, adolcence and young adulthood, was a crimal offense to be gay, ” said David Norris, a 70-year-old Irish senator and longtime said he had faced “total isolatn” as a young man. Though that is a formaly, the date when gay and lbian upl n marry will be termed that was support for the measure across the polil spectm, cludg om Prime Mister Kenny, of the center-right Fe Gael party, and his Labour aln partner, which had phed for the referendum. One opposn mercial said, “You should be able to have rervatns about gay marriage whout beg lled a homophobe, ” while a mercial supportg same-sex marriage featured young people enuragg their parents to vote.

IRELAND ON URSE TO BE FIRST UNTRY TO LEGALISE GAY MARRIAGE BY POPULAR VOTE

“Commentators jt don’t seem to have grasped that this has been the culmatn of a 10-year mpaign to change attus this untry, ” said Colm O’Gorman, chief executive of Amnty Internatnal (Ireland) and a leadg gay rights mpaigner. “The personal stori of people’s own ttimoni, as to their difficulti growg up beg gay certaly stck a chord wh people, ” said Jim Walsh, an Irish senator who opposed the marriage referendum, durg a televisn terview. Latvia swore the first openly gay print of a Baltic natn Rkēvičs, who sce 2011 was the untry’s foreign mister, was elected by Parliament May after Print Egils Levs did not seek re-electn.

She is thought to be the first openly gay prime mister the was an active unnist her nearly 10 years workg as a flight attendant, acrdg to the Council of Women World Lears, a work of female heads of state.

”Xavier Bettel Prime Mister of Luxembourg (2013-prent)Luxembourg Prime Mister Xavier Bettel at a news nference Belgra, Serbia, on July Vojovic / APBettel was first elected prime mister of Luxembourg 2013, and 2018 he beme the first openly gay prime mister the world to be re-elected for a send marriage beme legal Luxembourg 2015, and the same year Bettel beme the first servg European Unn lear to marry a same-sex partner, the BBC recently cricized a Hungarian law that bans school tnal materials and TV shows for people unr 18 that are emed to promote LGBTQ ntent, Rters reported.

IRELAND LEGALIZ GAY MARRIAGE HISTORIC VOTE

“To be natnally blamed, to be nsired as not normal, to be nsired as a danger for young people — ’s not realizg that beg gay is not a choice, ” Bettel said, acrdg to Rters.

“Hopefully this will blow over three or four days, and then I won’t be known as the gay mister, ” she told The Associated Prs at the Varadkar Prime Mister of Ireland (2017-20, 2022-prent)Irish Prime Mister Leo Varadkar Bssels on June 30. Polls have opened Ireland, where voters are makg history as the republic be the first untry to ask s electorate to legalise gay than 3 ln voters have been ved to st ballots Ireland’s 43 nstuenci, wh the rult to follow on Saturday. Pollg statns opened at 7am BST and close at votg follows a hard-fought and ocsnally ranro battle between nservative and liberal some 20 other untri worldwi have already legalised gay marriage, Ireland would be the first to do so through a referendum.

The move would mark the culmatn of an improbable journey a untry which homosexual acts were still illegal as recently as turnout is said to be higher than prev referendums the republic, wh some urban areas, particularly the key greater Dubl battleground, reportg that 20% of the electorate had st their vote before lunchtime.

CALIFORNIA STILL HAS AN ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE LAW ON THE BOOKS. VOTERS ULD REMOVE NEXT YEAR

Senator Norris is the gay rights veteran whose legal battle rulted the Irish ernment crimalisg homosexualy Og Cack, one of Ireland’s most famo openly gay sportsmen, spoke of his nerv on the eve of the referendum. An alliance of evangelil Catholics and Prottants have distributed more than 90, 000 anti-gay marriage pamphlets over the past week across Ireland urgg a no Monaghan, one of the ordators of the alliance of 100 relig activists, issued a warng on the eve of the referendum. Focg on fears stirred up by the no mp about children allegedly beg forcibly adopted by gay upl, Bishop Storey said: “You nnot refe marriage whout cludg rmatn and reference to children, fay and the good of society.

”Until this week the y-no battle was loured by accatns that opponents of gay marriage were misleadg the public over claims about forced adoptns or same-sex upl havg a supposed right to obta children through surrogacy.

HISTORIC VOTE IRELAND ON GAY MARRIAGE

The y mp has poted out that the missner overseeg the mpaign has dismissed the claims and emphasised they were not nnected to gay the past few days, the mpaign has turned much uglier, wh y advot revealg the amount of vrlic abe they have received. ”Referrg to Mullally gog public about her illns, her sexualy and her support for the y si, the letter-wrer ntued: “After all you have been relentlsly phg the twisted ia of gay marriage which would stroy the fay as we know and the liv of generatns of nocent children victimised by the narcissism of their ‘parents’.

”Mullally’s rrponnt end the letter wh further personalised, racially tged abe directed at her and her partner: “My advice is to accept that you are both homosexual and not very pretty, as there are far worse fat; you might be black for stance.

”Meanwhile, Colm O’Gorman, the executive director of Amnty Internatnal Ireland, proment y mpaigner and survivor of cleril child sex abe, disclosed on Thursday that a no voter tweeted him a picture of a gay man beg thrown to his ath off a buildg by Islamic State extremists. The Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform was found the 1970s, but s early activi took place agast an often hostile social and polil background.

IRELAND ULD MAKE HISTORY WH GAY MARRIAGE VOTE

In 1988, David Norris—then a member of the Seanad, the upper hoe of parliament—won a se before the European Court of Human Rights which led to the crimalizatn of homosexualy 1993. The Gay and Lbian Equaly Network had been advotg for equal rights om the 1980s, and embarked on a profsnal and well-fund mpaign promotg full marriage rights which would heavily fluence the cisn to hold a referendum. Openly gay members of the Dáil and Seanad had been elected at several electns by 2015; most proment among them is Leo Varadkar, who me out as a gay man 2015 while a ernment mister and was subsequently elected prime mister 2017.

VATIN SAYS IRELAND GAY MARRIAGE VOTE IS 'FEAT FOR HUMANY'

In 2018, Ireland ma to the top five statns for gay honeymoons, and is also nsired to be one of the saft statns for holidays for LGBT tourists. A long-nng urt se Northern Ireland, which is part of the Uned Kgdom, volved a dispute about whether a bakery engaged discrimatn when refed to bake a ke wh a pro-gay marriage msage on . The number of Y vot is 964, 616, wh 599, 505 for McDonaldAs the cliche go, succs has many fathers and the ntext of the Y victory the Irish gay marriage vote there will be many policians who will want to claim the cred.

But whether Labour gas om today’s stunng pro-gay marriage victory pecially greater Dubl is open to O'CarrollThe archbishop of Dubl, Diarmuid Mart, has scribed the almost certa Y fal rult as a wake-up ll for the Catholic church. Ireland has bee the first untry the world to legalise gay marriage by popular mandate – what the natn’s only openly gay mister has scribed as a “social revolutn”.

Gay rights mpaigners said the pro-same-sex marriage msage om Ireland would bolster their stggle for LGBT equaly across the talli suggtg massive majori for the pro-gay marriage si the ci of Dubl and Cork, the overall rult is all the more astonishg given that the Irish state only crimalised homosexualy 22 years ago.