Thread by @sillyorlagoose

Alrighty lads I just walked past a Vote No demonstration outside the GPO and I am ready for a rant buckle in

So the demonstration was very nationalist in appearance, Irish Republic flags, clearly outside the GPO for contextual reasons.

Now, you know me like I love a bit of nationalism myself, we have an A1 size frame of the proclamation hanging inside our front door in my family home. I recently recieved a limited edition print of Countess Markievicz, like I'm THAT friend

What I'm RAGIN about now is how all these people were holding posters that read "They said to cherish all of our children, Vote No" with pictures of Collins, Pearse, Dev and the lads surrounding the words

If these people think this Free State was built on equality in the first place I will fiGHT THEM. This country has yet to treat any of it's citizens equally. Has yet to treat women with the equality and RESPECT that was promised in the proclamation 100 YEARS ago

Do you think any of the women who fought for the independence of this country were on any of those posters? OF COURSE THEY WEREN'T.

I'm currently in the research process of my thesis for next year and I've had to do a lot of digging on suffrage and early feminism in Ireland during the period of our fight for Independence

I know how difficult it is to research feminism in the early years of the Irish Free State. As a nation we have always ignored female history, the contrast between quantity of written histories of male and female involvement in the establishment of the Irish Republic is INSANE.

THE IRONY that these people protesting outside the GPO are calling for us to cherish all of our children is laughable. NÍ SAOIRSE GO SAOIRSE NA MBÁN.

Until we introduce legislation in this country that gives women the right to their own bodily autonomy, until we are given the equal rights and opportunities that we were promised, no female citizen in this country is cherished.

THE IRONY that upon all of their nationalist vote no posters there were only male political figures to be seen. Our constitution was written by men for men. We have to stop ignoring gender inequality in this country

Voting No on May 25th will only fuel the enormous fire that was started with the establishment of the Bunreacht na hÉireann decades ago that is still packed full with anti women legislation.

"The Republic guarantees religious and civil liberty, equal rights and equal opportunities to all its citizens, and declares its resolve to pursue the happiness and prosperity of the whole nation and of all its parts, cherishing all of the children of the nation equally"

This is not a fight for equating the life of a foetus to that of a Mother. This is a fight for the Mothers, for the daughters, for the nieces and sisters and anyone else who can get pregnant.

"Equal rights and equal opportunities." Do you think we cherish the female population of Ireland equally as we do men? Have we ever??

So in response to your Nationalist Vote No protest, no amount of propaganda will sway me to Vote No. I am of a generation who believes in the improvement of the Irish Constitution, of the betterment of life for all of our citizens. Male, Female and Non Binary.

I believe in this country. I respect our history, and I want to be part of creating a new one. That is why I will be voting YES on May 25th.