A Labour TD has said there have been times when he has not held the hand of a same sex partner in public because he feared being abused. 

Conor Sheehan made the remarks while calling for a national action plan to tackle discrimination and hatred against the LGBT community. 

On Newstalk Breakfast, Deputy Sheehan noted there have been a number of alleged homophobic attacks in recent days.  “It is part of a pattern and there is a rise in homophobia and hate out there at the moment,” he explained. 

“It is something that concerns me and I do feel, in terms of our attitudes to LGBT people, in the last couple of years as a country, that we have, unfortunately, gone into reverse gear. 

“It’s not just me that’s saying this; Trinity College, Dublin and BeLongTo did research last year that found that 45% of LGBT people in Ireland feel unsafe holding hands of a partner in public. 

“Almost 50% of LGBT teenagers have experienced some form of homophobic abuse at school.” 

Pride flags in Dublin. Picture by: Sam Boal/Rollingnews.ie. 

When asked about his own personal experience of anti-LGBT sentiment, Deputy Sheehan confirmed there are times when he has avoided holding a partner’s hand in public. 

“I have been in situations like that before,” he said. 

“To be honest, as an LGBT person, I am always aware of my safety if I was on a date with somebody. 

“I would be very careful; I’m quite reserved in my demeanour.”

Pride flags fly at a vigil outside Dáil Éireann. Picture by: James Wilson/Newstalk

Deputy Sheehan added that he is also concerned that some victims are simply not reporting attacks. 

“Government did bring in the Criminal Justice (Hate Offences) Act

 last year, which recognises sexual orientation,” he continued. 

“But sometimes it can be quite difficult to prosecute these things.

“People can be very reluctant to come forward.” 

Deputy Sheehan suggested that a national action plan should focus in particular on incitement to hatred, with particular focus on the role of hatred online.

Main image: Conor Sheehan. Picture by: Leah Farrell/ RollingNews.ie