THE REFERENDUM ON the 8th Amendment has thrown up some interesting battles in the public eye. Not least the split that seems quite apparent in Fianna Fáil. Things are more tense in that party than Kris Jenner whenever Kanye starts tweeting.
Here is the picture of the Fianna Fail members advocating a No vote in the upcoming referendum on the Eighth Amendmenthttps://t.co/dnQD7sOjcO pic.twitter.com/SDxSG9PutZ
— Sarah Bardon (@SarahBardon) May 3, 2018
Let me start by seeing that I have no problem with people expressing their opinions on abortion. It is not an easy topic and morally it’s a quandary for a lot of people.
What I actually have a problem with is the make up of the photo. The photo contains 31 Fianna Fáil TDs and senators who are all opposed to repealing the 8th Amendment. Even though I don’t agree with their politics, that’s fair enough.
But just look at the strategic placing of the women in the photo. It smacks of ‘Oh they’re women. Stick them in the front’. I’m aware that it was a female TD Mary Butler who organised this photo call, that doesn’t make the placement any less jarring.
Irish women have been suffering from scandal after scandal in this country. It seems disingenuous that now a referendum about abortion is on the cards, women are now front and centre of Fianna Fáil.
FF is an anti-choice party - if they were in Gov, there would be no #repealthe8th referendum or legislation. https://t.co/qDUpAfztvf
— Colette Browne (@colettebrowne) May 3, 2018
Secondly, there is a certain hypocrisy when you see the green ribbon on some of the lapels. Mental health is something that’s constantly talked about in Ireland. We now have the highest rate of suicide among girls in Europe. In fact one of the only legal ways to procure an abortion is if you can prove you’re suicidal enough to pose an active threat to yourself. What a sad state of affairs we’re in.
If the people in the photos wearing those ribbons really wanted to improve mental health in Ireland then they would be advocating for more mental health support for pregnant people during and after they give birth.
Why would they though? It’s not like pregnant Irish women have the highest rate of depression in the OECD or anything like that.
The photo of the 31 Fianna Fáil TDs and Senators who gathered in Merrion Square Park to oppose the repeal of the #8thref. Am told it was prompted by the decision by FF TDs and Senators to hold a photo call for a Yes vote last week. pic.twitter.com/Gil5ProL7E
— Michael Brennan (@obraonain) May 3, 2018
Thirdly, there is something about the amount of older men in this photo that scares me. I’ve been out canvassing for the past few weeks for the Yes side and you learn not to judge people. The amount of older men who I have canvassed who I have expected to vote no and are actually voting yes makes my heart soar. It’s actually made me ashamed of myself for prejudging them.
However, this photo reminds us that stereotypes exist for a reason. Men telling pregnant people what they can and can’t do with their bodies like we’re back in the Middle Ages. Last time I checked, nobody was making them to travel abroad to have a medical procedure done.
Know them. Remember their faces. Question them on this photograph and hold them to account. Fianna Fáil does not care about women. Don't make the mistakes of the past and don't vote for them at the next election. For shame. #RepealThe8th #Together4Yes pic.twitter.com/Reg4N2iChG
— Mike Taylor (@MTaylorClare) May 3, 2018
21 Fianna Fáil TDs voted against having a referendum at all out of a total of 32 in case anyone had forgotten. Fianna Fáil hasn’t exactly provided us with a beacon of hope for the future.
There is a way to be pro life and yet not enforce your views on other people. Mary Black has demonstrated it along with countless others. You can be morally opposed to abortion and still be pro choice. It seems a number of these Fianna Fáil TDs and senators have missed that memo.
Mary Black is pro-life but voting yes for repeal after friends were forced to travel abroad with a fatal-foetal abnormality #together4yes https://t.co/zuUBZ8T4SO
— Together for Yes (@Together4yes) May 3, 2018
This referendum is going to be close and if it does pass, it will not be thanks to Fianna Fáil with the exception perhaps of Micháel Martin.
Remember this photo call when this is all over. Remember the faces. They’re the faces of a past Ireland that we need to move on from. Repealing the 8th is the way to do that.
