Marriage Equality Urgent Appeal

2 Oct 2013

 Our Stories Give Life to our Rights

Have you ever thought about how or why we have the rights we do? Why was homosexuality between men decriminalised, why do we have e quality legislation and civil partnership, why might civil marriage be the next step for LGBT people? We have these rights because of the tireless, often behind the scenes work of countless men and women and crucially, because LGBT people have shared their story and directly addressed misguided fears people have about LGBT people. Our stories connect with people’s humanity. Our stories give life to our rights.

We now need you to consider sharing your story; to share your tale of how you met the other half and maybe fell in love, or why your child doesn’t have the same rights as other children. Single LGBT people are just as important. We need you to breathe life into the debate, give it a personal edge. Would you like to be married, would it make a difference to your life, do the barriers which exist to parenting for LGBT people dampen your dreams of becoming a parent? These are all pertinent stories, and really, whatever your story is, we would love to hear from you.   

Marriage Equality could not do its work without the commitment, resolve and steely determination of the many lesbian and gay individuals & couples, and the children of LGBT parents, who share their story with media in an effort to normalise our lives among politicians and the general public. Without these stories, we’d remain hidden, silent and misunderstood. The LGBT community owes its rights to the many men and women who have shared their story and changed Irish society in the process.

Though we could have asked the wonderful families who have participated in our campaigns by sharing their story to give us a few words to share with you, we read this over the summer and thought the words summed the subject up nicely. The quote is from celebrity UK chef, Yotam Ottolenghi printed in The Guardian on Saturday 3rd August 2013. He talks about his partner Karl and their son Max, born through surrogacy.

“When Max came into our lives six months ago, Karl and I wanted to keep it private. There's work, there's public life, there's Twitter and all the rest. Then there is Karl and Max and me and our own little world. Sod the rest. But we soon realised how naive, even egotistical, this was. We both came out as gay men at a time when, on the surface, things were normalised. Neither of us had experienced serious bullying or obstacles in our career paths. But, actually, we were not completely liberated ourselves. We still had a few serious chips on our shoulders, and one of them was about keeping aspects of our lives private...At the end of a five-year process, I know we can't be shy about telling our story, that privacy just isn't an option. That's because we could only have had Max, and hopefully also a future sibling, thanks to other people who have shared their stories – even if that happens to be on cheesy talk shows. Max has already brought us immense joy. He has also forced our second coming out, this time as gay parents.”*

Marriage Equality is working towards securing a referendum on same sex marriage rights in 2014. We’ll need your stories more than ever. The campaign won’t be won with words and rhetoric, it will happen because you make it happen.

We’re looking for people from every county in Ireland. We’ll meet with you, help you as best we can and make sure that when you do get that call to talk to a journalist, you’ll be at ease, confident and secure.

Please contact us with any questions you may have by calling our office on (01) 799 4502 or info@marriagequality.ie. A call or email doesn’t mean you’re committing to anything, it’s just a step towards exploring your role in LGBT rights in Ireland.

Remember, our stories give life to our rights, so please, give our request some consideration.

*Read the entire feature about Yotam Ottolenghi by clicking the following link http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/03/yotam-ottolenghi-gay-fatherhood-parent