Today is a historic day. By all accounts the people of Ireland have 'resoundingly' (WaPo's description) voted to enshrine Marriage Equality in the Irish Constitution. It appears that Yes will carry the day by a 2:1 margin, and voter turnout was so high that more people have voted in this referendum than have ever voted in a referendum in the history of the state.
The technical result will be that Article 41 of the Irish Constitution will have a new subsection 4 inserted which states:
"Marriage may be contracted in accordance with law by two persons without distinction as to their sex."
I feel so emotional at the moment that it is difficult to articulate. I should note that I'm hetero and this will not affect me directly at all - and I mean that. There is no change to the status of marriage for heterosexual couples, no change to surrogacy or adoption, no requirement for a priest to preside over a same sex marriage; the only change is that existing protections afforded to married couples will have their remit expanded to be made available to couples in same-sex relationships. It's this inclusion that has my eyes glistening as I type this.
One of the most touching moments in the campaign came from Ursula Halligan, who is the Politics Editor for TV3 News in Ireland. She came out publicly in an Op/Ed published by The Irish Times, in which she described how she struggled for decades with homophobia, and spent her life in the closet until the referendum approached. Her words:
When I fell in love with a girl in my class in school, I was terrified. Rummaging around in the attic a few weeks ago, an old diary brought me right back to December 20th, 1977.
“These past few months must have been the darkest and gloomiest I have ever experienced in my entire life,” my 17-year-old self wrote.
“There have been times when I have even thought about death, of escaping from this world, of sleeping untouched by no-one forever. I have been so depressed, so sad and so confused. There seems to be no one I can turn to, not even God. I’ve poured out my emotions, my innermost thoughts to him and get no relief or so-called spiritual grace. At times I feel I am talking to nothing, that no God exists. I’ve never felt like this before, so empty, so meaningless, so utterly, utterly miserable.”
Such is the situation that has been faced by the LGBT community, especially in Ireland for many years - it's important to note that homosexuality was a crime here until 1993. This island has come a long way in a short period of time, but until right now there was a big thing missing.
Ursula went on to explain:
I realised that I could leave the prison completely or stay in the social equivalent of an open prison. The second option would mean telling a handful of people but essentially go on as before, silently colluding with the prejudices that still find expression in casual social moments.
It’s the easier of the two options, particularly for those close to me. Because those who love you can cope with you coming out, but they’re wary of you “making an issue” of it.
The game-changer was the marriage equality referendum. It pointed me toward the first option: telling the truth to anyone who cares. And I knew if I was going to tell the truth, I had to tell the whole truth and reveal my backing for a Yes vote. For me, the two are intrinsically linked.
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If my story helps even one 17-year-old school girl, struggling with her sexuality, it will have been worth it.
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If Ireland votes Yes, it will be about much more than marriage. It will end institutional homophobia. It will say to gay people that they belong, that it’s safe to surface and live fully human, loving lives. If it’s true that 10 per cent of any population are gay, then there could be 400,000 gay people out there; many of them still living in emotional prisons. Any of them could be your son, daughter, brother, sister, mother, father or best friend. Set them free. Allow them live full lives.
Yesterday we told people who have struggled with their sexuality that they shouldn't be afraid, because millions of their Irish family stand beside them; that is the most beautiful thing of all.
Today I am indescribably proud to be Irish.
10:57 AM PT: Official vote count has been announced:
Yes: 1.2 Million
No: 0.7 Million
Overall votes: 1.93 Million people