This May marks a landmark moment in Ireland’s LGBTQ+ history, with the 10-year anniversary of the YES vote for marriage equality. What better way to celebrate a landmark in May than with a movie? Outhouse LGBTQ+ Centre is partnering with the Irish Film Institute (IFI) to host a special screening of the documentary The 34th: The Story of Marriage Equality in Ireland on Sunday, 18 May at 3:00pm.
Directed by Linda Cullen and Vanessa Gildea, the doc came in the wake of the Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland, permitting marriage in Ireland without distinction to sex. The film tells the story of the driven and dedicated people who formed Marriage Equality in Ireland, and developed it into a highly effective grassroots force with one clear goal in mind – the extension of Civil Marriage to same sex couples. Through revealing interviews and archive material, former board members and staff outline the strategising, fierce battles, sheer hard graft and personal cost of running such an all-consuming campaign.
After the screening, a 30-minute Q&A session will be held on the film with Outhouse’s CEO, Oisín O’Reilly, Moninne Griffith, CEO of Belong To – LGBTQ+ Youth Ireland, and Mamobo Ogoro, CEO of GORM.
At a moment in time when queer rights are up for grabs to be rolled back in the supposedly progressive west, the film and the anniversary represent an important reminder for Irish film fans of the success in solidarity that the referendum represented. With the amendment approved at the referendum on 22 May 2015 by 62% of voters on a turnout of 61%, there was an overwhelming majority for, marking the first time that a state legalised same-sex marriage through a popular vote.
Progress can be hard won by those that it effects, and quickly lost by the prejudiced. It was confirmed today by GAZE International LGBTQIA Film Festival that after a successful thirteen-year partnership with IT company Accenture, their sponsorship of GAZE has come to an end.
GAZE thanked Accenture “for all their hard work and support over the years, and are immensely proud of the longevity of this long-standing relationship and how it has enabled the festival to grow over the years”. However the end of this partnership comes in the wake of a decision by Accenture in February of this year to end programmes that try to support equality and diversity in its workforce, in the wake of anti-inclusion policy orders issued by US President Donald Trump.
GAZE 2025 will continue with the ongoing support of the Arts Council, National Talent Academies and additional support from Dublin City Council, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Coimisiún na Meán, the GAZE Festival Friends and their loyal audience, and they are inviting donations and Festival Friend sign ups now.
The 34th was a winner of the Audience Award and the Spirit of Gaze Award at the 25th Annual Gaze LGBT Film Festival in 2017, where it first premiered.
Tickets for this screening on 18th May are available now from the IFI here.