The Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform was an organisation set up to campaign for the decriminalisation of
homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...
in the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...
and
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
in the 1970s. Its most prominent leader was
David Norris, an English studies lecturer in
Trinity College Dublin
, name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin
, motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin)
, motto_lang = la
, motto_English = It will last i ...
, Joycean scholar and from the 1980s to the present a member of
Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann (, ; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house).
It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its memb ...
.
History
While serving as a lecturer at Trinity College, Norris and a group of other students informally established the Sexual Liberation Movement in 1974. It was short-lived, but two of the splinter organizations formed on campus were the Dublin University Gay Society, the first long-term LGBT rights organization in Ireland, and a group of law students known as the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform.
Its first legal advisor was
Mary McAleese
Mary Patricia McAleese ( ; ga, Máire Pádraigín Mhic Ghiolla Íosa; ; born 27 June 1951) is an Irish activist lawyer and former politician who served as the eighth president of Ireland from November 1997 to November 2011. She is an academic ...
, Reid Professor of Law at
Trinity College Dublin
, name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin
, motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin)
, motto_lang = la
, motto_English = It will last i ...
, future
President of Ireland
The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Ireland and the supreme commander of the Irish Defence Forces.
The president holds office for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms.Constitu ...
; she served as legal advisor from 1975 to 1979, when she left her professorial position to join
RTÉ. She was succeeded in that role in the 1980s by
Mary Robinson
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson ( ga, Máire Mhic Róibín; ; born 21 May 1944) is an Irish politician who was the 7th president of Ireland, serving from December 1990 to September 1997, the first woman to hold this office. Prior to her electi ...
, a former Reid Professor of Law and then-Trinity College Senator, who later became the first female
President of Ireland
The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Ireland and the supreme commander of the Irish Defence Forces.
The president holds office for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms.Constitu ...
.
Norris took a case to the
Irish High Court in 1980 seeking a declaration that the laws of 1861 and 1885 which criminalised homosexual conduct were not in force since the enactment of the
Constitution of Ireland
The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditi ...
. Article 50 of the Constitution provides that laws enacted before the Constitution that are inconsistent with it would no longer be in force. The case (
Norris v. Attorney General
''Norris v. The Attorney General'' is a 1983 judgement from the Supreme Court of Ireland that held that the law which criminalised homosexuality was not against the Constitution of Ireland. David Norris was subsequently successful in the Europea ...
) was lost on legal grounds and the decision was upheld on appeal to the
Supreme Court of Ireland which referred in its judgment to Christian moral teaching and the needs of society.
Norris then took a case in 1983 to the
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...
claiming that the Irish laws breached the state's obligations under Article 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, regarding respect for private life (
Norris v. Ireland). In a 1988 ruling, the court found that the Irish laws were in breach of the convention and directed the state to pay costs to Norris.
No reform action was taken by the then government of
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...
Charles Haughey
Charles James Haughey (; 16 September 1925 – 13 June 2006) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach on three occasions – 1979 to 1981, March to December 1982 and 1987 to 1992. He was also Minister for the Gaeltacht from ...
. When
Albert Reynolds
Albert Martin Reynolds (3 November 1932 – 21 August 2014) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1992 to 1994, Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1992 to 1994, Minister for Finance from 1988 to 1991, Minister for Indust ...
succeeded as Taoiseach in 1992, he declared that it was low on his list of priorities. However, in his subsequent coalition
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christia ...
/
Labour Party government, as a result of pressure from the Labour Party the laws were reformed by the
Minister for Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry.
Lists of current ministries of justice
Named "Ministry"
* Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia)
* Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan)
* Ministry of Just ...
,
Máire Geoghegan-Quinn
Máire Geoghegan-Quinn (; born 5 September 1950) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science from 2010 to 2014, Member of the European Court of Auditors from 2000 to 2010, ...
in 1993. She was noted for insisting that an equal age of consent be provided for homosexuals and
heterosexuals
Heterosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction or sexual behavior between people of the opposite sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, heterosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" ...
alike.
See also
*
LGBT rights in the Republic of Ireland
Attitudes in Ireland towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people are among the most liberal in the world. Ireland is notable for its transformation from a country holding overwhelmingly conservative attitudes toward LGBT issu ...
*
Recognition of same-sex unions in the Republic of Ireland
Same-sex marriage in Ireland has been legal since 16 November 2015. A referendum on 22 May 2015 amended the Constitution of Ireland to provide that marriage is recognised irrespective of the sex of the partners. The measure was signed into la ...
*
List of LGBT rights organizations
This is a list of LGBT rights organizations around the world. For social and support groups or organizations affiliated with mainstream religious organizations, please see ''List of LGBT-related organizations and conferences''. For organization ...
*
Norris v. Attorney General
''Norris v. The Attorney General'' is a 1983 judgement from the Supreme Court of Ireland that held that the law which criminalised homosexuality was not against the Constitution of Ireland. David Norris was subsequently successful in the Europea ...
*
Norris v. Ireland
References
External links
Norris v. Ireland 1988{{LGBT in Ireland
LGBT rights in the Republic of Ireland
LGBT history in Ireland
LGBT history in the United Kingdom
LGBT political advocacy groups in the Republic of Ireland
Law reform in the Republic of Ireland
Law reform in the United Kingdom