This year, Pride marks the momentous 10th anniversary of the Marriage Equality Referendum, but also presents an opportunity to reflect on the status of LGBTQ+ rights, according to Social Democrats TD P\u00e1draig Rice and Senator Patricia Stephenson.<\/p>\n
Deputy Rice said:<\/p>\n
\u201cThis weekend, tens of thousands of people will march through Dublin to mark Pride. While it\u2019s a celebration of love, equality and liberation, we must remember that it is also a protest.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have come a long way since homosexuality was decriminalised in 1993, but so much of our community is still subject to forms of discrimination and inequality.<\/p>\n
\u201cTrans people are still being denied timely gender-affirming care, with Ireland being found to have the worst trans healthcare system in the EU, an appalling indictment, while the State is seriously failing the intersex community, with barbaric and medically unnecessary interventions continuing to be performed on intersex children.<\/p>\n
\u201cConversion therapy has not been banned, despite repeated promises, and there are significant gaps in family law that have not been closed for LGBTQ+ parent families.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can be proud of how far we\u2019ve come as a country while realising that we still have a long way to go – rising levels of hate crime and hostility towards our community must be stamped out.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn other parts of Europe, we\u2019re seeing full-frontal attacks on LGBTQ+ human rights and fundamental freedoms – in Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n has banned Pride events.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Mayor of Budapest has been threatened with imprisonment for defying the Hungarian Government and hosting Pride this weekend – banning Pride is a violation of the right to self-expression, peaceful assembly and freedom from discrimination, and yet the European Commission has not acted adequately.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Commission must address this matter with the urgency and gravity it deserves.\u201d<\/p>\n
Senator Stephenson said:<\/p>\n
\u201cThe EU Court of Justice has said that Hungary is in breach of EU law and the fundamental values upon which the EU was founded: respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities.<\/p>\n
\u201cHungary\u2019s decision to ban pride stands in very sharp contrast to these core values – the European Commission has finally called on Hungary to uphold LGBTQ+ rights and reverse the prohibition on Pride.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Commission has the power to take action, but instead all it has offered is words – In refusing to act decisively, it has abandoned the LGBTQ+ community and activists in Hungary.\u201d<\/p>\n
27th June, 2025<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This year, Pride marks the momentous 10th anniversary of the Marriage Equality Referendum, but also presents an opportunity to reflect on the status of LGBTQ+ rights, according to Social Democrats TD P\u00e1draig Rice and Senator Patricia Stephenson. Deputy Rice said: \u201cThis weekend, tens of thousands of people will march through Dublin to mark Pride. While […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":11725,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[642,641,7,545],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12865","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-padraig-rice","category-patricia-stephenson","category-press-release","category-pride"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n