There are no certainties in politics or when it comes to ‘the vote.’ Constitutional decisions are
not taken on the basis of opinion polls. The only poll that counts is the one
in which citizens exercise their democratic mandate at the poll. Opinion polls
may suggest that the marriage equality referendum will be passed on Friday but
only the people have the power to make that decision.
As we saw recently in Britain opinion polls can be wrong.
The British Labour Party was badly mauled, neither of the north’s unionist
parties emerged as ‘kingmakers’, and the Tories were returned with a clear and
workable majority. None of the polls forecast those outcomes. So, not for the
first time the peoples’ wishes confounded the pollsters predictions.
If you have a vote in the two referendums in the 26 counties
– on marriage equality and the lowering of the age for candidate in Presidential
elections – then I am asking that you vote YES.
If you don’t have a vote but know someone who does pick up
the phone, send an email, or text or direct message them. Of the two
referendums the marriage equality vote has become a litmus test for the humanity
and tolerance; the understanding and compassion of society in that part of the
island. It has sparked one of the most important debates in recent generations.
It
has now about more than the right of a man or a woman to marry someone of the
same sex.
It will in a very real and fundamental way be a profound judgement
on the spirt and intent of the citizens of the south of Ireland.
As an Irish republican my starting point is the
Proclamation. This document, which is frequently described as the ‘mission
statement’ of modern Irish republicanism, is quite definitive. It declares its
resolve to ‘pursue the happiness and the
prosperity of the whole nation and all its parts, cherishing all of the
children of the nation equally.’
We are those children. All of us. Without exception. We are
all the children of the nation.
But the debate has gone beyond even this concept, this
principal. It is about more than equality. It’s about happiness and inclusivity
and acceptance. For too long our gay brothers and sisters have been forced by outdated
law and prejudice to live a lie or to stay in the shadows.
Now as we have debated the issue of marriage equality the
conversation has widened beyond the legal to the personal; beyond the
constitutional to the human and emotional. I have listened to gay citizens talk
openly and honestly and publicly about their lives and loves; their worries and
hopes in a way I never have before. As a consequence this debate has taken on a
new dynamic and imperative. It has become more than just a debate about
marriage equality – it’s about the right of every single citizen to be
comfortable and happy in their skin and for their difference to be embraced and
loved.
Many of us are lucky to have found our soul mate. That very
special person who shares our lives with us in good times and bad. Others are
still searching. Why should the right to love be subject to chauvinism and
bigotry and bad law?
Why can’t a gay person fall in love, marry, have a family,
be loved, and enjoy intimacy and happiness. Is their love somehow different
from the love of heterosexual couples? Are their emotions and feelings somehow
different? And why can’t the love of a gay couple be recognised and valued and
accepted in the same way as that of a heterosexual couple?
Marriage, if it is to mean anything, must be about love.
It’s about two people committing to each other in a very special way. No one
should be barred from that experience and that commitment.
All of us know citizens who are gay. They are loved members
of our family; they work with us in our jobs; they are our neighbours, our
friends and our comrades. They deserve the same rights and protections under
the law as everyone else.
They should also have the same rights to the rituals and
legal and constitutional protections of our society that provide community and
family solidarity and belonging.
It’s easy to be a begrudger. To insist that only your way of
thinking and of behaviour is the right way. To insist that society should stick
with the rules and regulations that are part of our past. But humanity is
thankfully not like that. If it was we would still be living in the stone age; or
only the rich and powerful would have the vote; or women would still be chattels
not citizens; and the laws which govern and shape our lives would never change
and society would stagnate.
Fortunately, there are always courageous people, brave
people, who will make a stand against injustice. Brave citizens will endure
public humiliation, imprisonment and worse to advance fairness and equality and
justice.
I have had the honour to meet many courageous people in the
course of this referendum. Good people who don’t want to discriminate or hurt
anyone. There is an opportunity on Friday May 22nd to help transform
society in one part of this island and help reshape it across the whole island.
Padraig Pearse in The Sovereign People says: “The end of freedom is human
happiness”. This Friday we have a huge opportunity to make an awful lot of
people happy, and wouldn’t that be a great thing to do on Friday. Caith do
vóta, agus vótáil tá. 
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