I was so bloody happy to see that Liberty Hall on Eden Quay will be rainbow-ing itself for next weeks Pride Festival in Dublin. Its a wonderful way to mark the event and I think its really deadly that SIPTU have taken a chance on something like this in a country where only last week there was shock and horror over a broadcaster saying ‘fuck’, I mean the ‘F word’ on national television.

I don’t remember ever being told what homosexuality was as a child, the Irish Catholic School System was not exactly informative about love and its many varieties and it was never something I encountered in my daily life in quiet suburban Dublin. It has only really come to my attention recently that my first encounter with the gay community was through the character of Mr Smithers, on the greatest programme of all time The Simpsons.

Smithers was a closet homosexual, the personal assistant to Megalo/egomaniac Mr Burns and my sole example of Greek love. I would laugh at how Smithers would fawn over Monty Burns, it was funny and it still is. The 8 year old me found it absolutely hilarious that a person could be in love with someone that horrible and that was it. I don’t think I ever considered the fact that it was two men, it was just funny that anyone would be capable of loving Mr Burns, the frail bag of bones that he is. That was always the ridiculous part of the plot which was always cleverly crafted by the amazing writers.

I think as children we are far more willing to accept the idea of love. I have seen several viral links/videos of children’s response to Gay Marriage over the past year and none of it surprises me. Love at its most simple level is an overwhelming desire to be around each other and those children lucky enough to have adoring parents understand that.

Sex in our fast paced, self-driven, modern life has become something else that can at times be rather detached from love and that’s OK. Everyone wants to stick it in someone or wants it stuck in them, its been happening forever and will continue to happen forever. Sex always seems to be the main focus or the main difference, rather, when people talk about the LGBT community in Ireland but what about the main similarity? While sex may be the difference, Love is the similarity.

Pride is not a celebration of sex but a celebration of love and acceptance. So get out to the Pride Festival and celebrate your ability to love. Do it for Smithers but maybe not Mr Burns.

Happy Pride Dublin!