10th anniversary of Marriage Equality - The Labour Party

Unfortunately, our event was targeted by anti-migrant activists and for the safety of the staff of the original venue, we had to seek an alternative. We would like to thank the OutHouse on Capel Street opened their doors to us in a tremendous act of solidarity as well as the many political representatives from other political parties who showed up in solidarity.

This was a fantastic reminder of how it was the solidarity of progressive groups coming together that made Marriage Equality such a success. We must remember that when progressive people of all political persuasions come forward, we can achieve momentous changes for our country.

But this event was also a sad reminder of how things have not changed, and in some cases has gone backwards, since 2015. We can see here in Ireland what happens when progressive voices fail to win, but this is even more prevalent elsewhere across the world. The banning of Budapest Pride in Hungary, or even closer to home in the UK with the rollbacks on transgender rights, we must remember that progress on LGBTQ+ rights are not always ever evolving. As the LGBTQ+ community, our rights are not just granted, they are fought for and won by our activists and progressive groups the world over.

As we enter Pride season in Ireland, we must be more assertive in our support for our LGBTQ+ community. Support us at Dublin Pride, yes, but also in smaller, rural Pride events, which are constantly under threat. We must rediscover and capture the spirit that made Marriage Equality such a success 10 years ago to win the fights for LGBTQ+ equality and liberation which we are facing now.

– James Kearney