DUBLIN — In the final hours of a political campaign that could make Ireland the first country to adopt same-sex marriage by a popular vote, support for the measure trickled in from overseas and from an even more unexpected place: some of the clergy in this Roman Catholic country.
Irish citizens in places as far-flung as Australia and California flew back to their home country on Friday to cast ballots in a referendum on a constitutional amendment that would make it legal for gays to marry. And some in the clergy went public with their decision to vote yes.
Father Gerry O’Connor, a priest in the Cherry Orchard area of Dublin, said that notions of the traditional heterosexual nuclear family were changing, and he saw it as a moral imperative to advocate for same-sex marriage, even if the church does not agree.
“I live in a disadvantaged area where every family structure exists, and when you sit down with those families your preconceptions can be challenged,” he said. “I feel strongly for these families and I see no evidence that a vote for equal status that would help end the present stigma is to the detriment of the common good.”
The referendum, part of a widening social trend to extend civil rights to gays, had the potential to be historic, as the first electoral endorsement by a country of the right to same-sex marriages. The fact that the vote was taking place at all seemed significant to many, given Ireland’s conservative past.
In Dublin, the capital, supporters were out on the streets, handing out leaflets to motorists at major crossroads. Campaigning in rural areas appeared more subdued. But in County Kildare, outside of Dublin, clusters of signs near polling stations declared: ”Two men can’t replace the love of a mother.”
Turnout was reported to be higher than usual, especially in urban areas like Dublin, where voters are seen as more likely to cast votes in support.
Polls closed at 10 p.m., but results were not expected to be available until Saturday morning, and would not be official until later in the day.
In Dublin’s gay pubs, the mood was celebratory, but tinged with caution. After the British elections this month defied both polls and pundits, no one was taking anything for granted.
Inside the Pantibar, one of the most popular gay bars, people checked their cellphones more frequently than usual, looking for any news.
Brian Ward, 26, insisted his confidence hadn’t wavered throughout the campaign, but that a loss would be just a setback.
“If we’re not singing from the rafters tomorrow because the result hasn’t gone our way, I will stay and fight because I am an Irishman and I love this country,” he said.
The Catholic Church in Ireland officially opposes legalization of same-sex marriage and has been the chief adversary of the effort to add the proposed amendment to the Constitution, which declares, “Marriage may be contracted in accordance with law by two persons without distinction as to their sex.”
While bishops recently issued a pastoral letter urging parishioners to get out and vote no, they have, for the most part, waged their campaign through Catholic groups, apparently out of concern that a too-harsh public stance could push some wavering voters into the yes camp.
Though 84 percent of the Irish are Catholic, church attendance has faded, and the once-lockstep solidarity with church teachings has eroded, a result of rising secularism and reaction to the pedophile scandals that have rocked the church.
But even in their opposition, many church leaders, following the example of Pope Francis, have preached tolerance, and tried to distinguish between objection to marriage and acceptance of gays.
“Sexual orientation does not debar anyone from God’s love,” the Association of Catholic Priests said in a statement in March. “If as priests we are speaking on this matter, we need to remember that the use of intemperate language can cause deep hurt among gay people and their families, as well as doing further damage to an already ailing church.”
Some Irish citizens living abroad, responding to a social media campaign, came home to vote. Voting is allowed only in Ireland; it is not possible to mail ballots from abroad.
A railroad car filled with supporters of same-sex marriage and adorned with balloons with the word “love” made its way from London to Holyhead, Wales, where would-be voters then journeyed by boat to Dublin.
Roughly 3.2 million citizens are eligible to vote on the referendum. In a sign of the significance of the issue, 60,000 more people have registered to vote for the first time since the general election four years ago, many of them in the past few months.
Graham Herterich, who runs the Cupcake Bloke bakery in Dublin, has been busy making rainbow spongecakes, with six layers representing the colors of the flag associated with the gay rights movement, to help raise funds for the yes campaign.
“I hope I’ll be getting asked to make wedding cakes after tomorrow,” he said.
- http://bit.ly/1RaSHPE
Niciun comentariu:
Trimiteți un comentariu