Strike 4 Repeal activists caught commuters’ attention this morning, when they dropped a banner from Front Arch. The action, they said, was intended to grab attention as the Dáil prepares to debate reform of Ireland’s abortion law.
Just after 9am this morning, the banner was dropped down the face of Front Arch by members of the campaign group. The banner was quickly removed by security.
In an email statement to The University Times Sadhbh Sheeran, Strike 4 Repeal organiser, said that the banner “is a reminder to those passing through the city that taking action, however large or small, today and in the months to come is of the greatest importance to the repeal movement”.
“It is a reminder to Trinity students, who have supported strike in the past and those who are new to the movement, to join the Strike Assembly outside the Dail today”, she added.
Later today, the government will debate the recommendations of the Oireachtas Committee on the Eighth Amendment. The report delivered by the committee recommended a simple repeal of the amendment, which would then allow legislation to be introduced to regulate the area.
Members of the Oireachtas committee voted last December for a direct repeal of the amendment and endorsed several other recommendations made by the Citizens’ Assembly such as allowing abortion where a “real and substantial risk to the life of the woman by suicide”, as well as where there is a “serious risk to the physical health of the woman”.
With the debate being projected outside the Dáil for those gathered to watch, as it stands the majority of TDs seem to support a repeal of the eighth amendment.
In March 2017, members of Strike 4 Repeal briefly covered former Provost George Salmon and Trinity alumnus William Lecky in black as part of a national demonstration.
Joining the Trinity Strike 4 Repeal group will be Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) and the Union of Students in Ireland (USI).
In an email statement to The University Times last night, the USI Vice-President for Equality and Citizenship, Síona Cahill, said that they will be using social media to promote interaction with the debate.
“If they didn’t think it was on their doorsteps before this, TDs and Senators have learned that for thousands of newly registered voters, it most certainly is now”, she added.
TCDSU is mandated to support Strike 4 Repeal. TCDSU President, Kevin Keane, said in an email statement last night that “finally, we will hear a full, informed and complete debate in Ireland’s highest political chamber, and we will move ever closer to a full, unqualified Repeal”.
In May 2015, TCDSU hung a banner from Front Arch, calling for a yes vote for marriage equality.
