Ireland’s vote on same-sex marriage on May 22 will be the first time a nation has ever voted on legalising gay marriage - so how is the rest of the world viewing the debate here?
In the UK the vast majority of recent attention has been on the call for a Yes vote by Mrs Brown, with many major national titles carrying the story and the video, in which Brendan O’Carroll’s character asks, “What’s all the fecking fuss?”
It’s been viral campaign videos – generally from the yes side – that have gained the most traction beyond Ireland, with the BeLonGTo video in support of a yes vote posted on several major US sites.
The overall view is the broader one, taking in Ireland’s change from ultra-conservative land of Catholic dogma, to modern inclusive democracy, sitting comfortably among Europe’s most liberal nations. It’s, as you might expect, far more focused on the long view than on the minutiae of the increasingly tempestuous debate.
In topics that attempt to explore the background to the vote in more depth, the framing sometimes feels a bit dated, with Ireland portrayed in the headlines as a society with one leg still firmly in theocracy. While there’s plenty of good reporting here, and some insightful commentary on Ireland and its road to same-sex marriage, it’s clear that Ireland’s status as the Catholic cousin of Europe marks us out abroad.
The Guardian initially reported that “under the Irish constitution any major social change altering the balance of church and state had to be put to a plebiscite.” This was later corrected, but the error spoke about a general view of Ireland, which has been noticeable in much of the other reporting on the issue in the international press.
The Financial Times
The Financial Times asks if a yes vote would, “show a liberal spirit taking hold in the Catholic nation?”, and the Boston Globe calls Ireland a “deeply Catholic land.”
The Boston Globe
Unsurprisingly many have focused on the fact that if the vote passes then it will be the first time in history a country has adopted gay marriage through popular vote.
The BBC (above) says "a pivotal moment in the evolving relationship between Church and State, pitting religious leaders against the government in an historically conservative and Catholic country."
