Time to open civil marriage to lesbian and gay couples

25 Feb 2008

MarriagEquality Co-chair, Denise Charlton, and her partner, Paula Fagan, were featured in today's Irish Times. Denise and Paula wrote a powerful article about their role as mothers to their young son, and how being denied access to civil marriage impacts on their lives and, most importantly, on their child's.

The full article can be read here (subs required).

MarriagEquality wants to work for those gay and lesbian couples in Ireland who are already lovingly raising and parenting children. These families are denied the same rights as heterosexual couples. In fact, under the current system a child parented by a gay and lesbian couple does not have the right to have his or her parents recognised by the law nor are such children protected in the same way as children of married heterosexuals.

The only way to address this major anomaly is to legislate for civil marriage for all.