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19th Oct 2015

These Irish stars are lending their voices to the Repeal The 8th campaign

Impossible to ignore

Carl Kinsella

Ireland’s next big fight.

The early months of 2015 will be remembered for Ireland’s historic struggle for marriage equality and a huge sea-change in Ireland’s reputation as a country dogged by dogmatic, archaic values.

It seems that the next battle is nearing the horizon, as the Repeal The 8th movement builds momentum in the search for abortion rights for women in Ireland.

Creator of Father Ted, Graham Linehan and his wife Helen, who is also a writer, spoke to The Guardian today about their heart-breaking choice to terminate a foetus that would have had no chance of survival.

Under Ireland’s current laws, Helen Linehan would have faced up to 14 years in prison had she obtained an illegal abortion on Irish soil.

Oscar-winner Liam Neeson has also lent his voice to the cause (literally), by narrating this haunting campaign video which critiques Ireland’s constitution.

Clip via Amnesty International Ireland.

Certain Irish TDs have claimed that there is not the ‘appetite’ for a referendum on this extremely divisive issue, but as more and more influential voices add their decibels to the growing demand for change.

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