Why I’m Urging People To Vote Yes

I had been “sitting on the fence” on the upcoming marriage equality referendum in Ireland. That doesn’t mean I didn’t have an opinion. Anyone that knows me will tell you that I have opinions on most topics ☺

But I wasn’t interested in taking an overly public stance on the debacle and I definitely did not want to have my company take a public stance.

I don’t like mixing business with politics or religion. Unfortunately the current referendum seems to mix politics and religion along with a few other ingredients and it all makes for a rather potent cocktail!

So why did my views change?

Simply put the NO camp annoyed me.

More than that they actually made me angry. They offended me. They offended my family. They offended my friends. They offended my employees. They offended the entire country.

How?

Take a look at the posters they’ve been using in their offensive and insulting campaign:

The imagery is quite clever at one level. Using children to push your agenda is hardly a new trick, but it’s still a relatively effective one.

The old cry of “think of the children” is a tactic that has been used by so many groups to push so many different things over the years .. yet it always works (to a point).

But the referendum isn’t about children. And even if it was the assumption that the ideal family unit is made up of a mother and father is not realistic. I’m not sure when it stopped being realistic, but it hasn’t reflected reality for a very very long time.

I grew up in a “non-traditional” family. I don’t talk about it a lot, but it’s not a secret. I don’t talk about it, because it’s not important. It’s irrelevant.

The fact that I was raise by a single mother has zero impact on my ability to exist as a productive member of society.

I’m glad I had a mother who cared about me and wouldn’t want to have had a “perfect” unit where the parents didn’t get along, or abused each other or their children.

Yeah — every child needs a parents, but that can be one parent, two parents, two mothers, two fathers. Whatever.

Children need love.

Or how about this one?

The referendum is on “marriage equality”. It is NOT about “surrogacy”. To conflate the two topics is an underhanded tactic and is offensive.

Here’s the thing. Like so many other things in society it’s a matter of choices and preferences.

I don’t care how anyone lives their life, as long as they aren’t doing me any harm.

If you want to marry your girlfriend (and you’re a girl) or your boyfriend (and you’re a guy) then that’s your choice. You should be able to make it. It’s not for me, or anyone else, to dictate how you live your life. Are you a mass murderer or a paedophile? No? Didn’t think so .. nothing to see here .. move along.

Here’s the thing. If you don’t go out and vote on May 22nd then you could be blocking someone you care about from living the life they want to live.

Your inaction could mean someone you know and love has less rights than you do.

So vote YES

It’s the right thing

And no, I’m not going to apologise for advocating this stance.