On the day after we go to print with this issue of GCN, An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar is announcing in the Dáil a pardon of gay men who were convicted of homosexual off ences before decriminalisation in 1993, and a offi cial event will mark the moment in Dublin Castle on June 24. It seems that Ireland is casting off yet another shackle.
We’re at an interesting juncture, given the landslide Yes vote in the referendum on the eighth amendment in May, where a clear message was given by the Irish people to the Catholic Church about its past control over our lives and bodies. As a message to the Word Meeting of Families (WMF), which the Pope will visit Ireland for next August, Dublin Pride chose the theme ‘We Are Family’ this year. It’s a direct response to reports that images of same-sex parents and their children were removed from promotional materials for WMF