The recent results of the local and European elections were a brief insight into how each political party is performing, what is the level of engagement of the working class with the electoral process and which messages are resonating from which political parties. The main conclusions to draw before dissecting the rest are as follows: … Read more
In the past, young people were able to receive a home from the local authority which led to localized construction projects. Most people in Ireland lived in homes built by their local corporation or council, the same model existed in the United Kingdom where local authorities constructed mass local housing. Seems simple, right? Today the … Read more
‘Spoiling a ballot’ is the act of defacing one’s electoral ballot so as to invalidate it, meaning that the vote is not counted. This proposes the question, why would someone spoil their ballot? Is it ever the correct action to take? The north of Ireland’s European elections had a turnout of 45.41%, and in the … Read more
One of the newly elected EU representatives for the Midlands-West of Ireland is Maria Walsh. At only 31 years old, she is notable for her youth and the fact that she is one of only a few LGBTQ+ members of the European Parliament. Her victory might be seen as a positive step for Ireland’s queer … Read more
Socialists in Ireland must ask themselves if the USI is genuinely an ally in our fight for the liberation of young people, or if it is just a bourgeois institution that can never deliver the needed material interests of young people in Ireland. I believe that rather than being a force for radical change in … Read more
For a decade now, the people of Ireland, North and South of the border have been crucified by a cabal of political parties wedded to the interests of capitalists. For a decade, cuts have been inflicted against the most vulnerable in society in order to “balance the budget”. For a decade, trade unions have not … Read more
James Penney’s After Queer Theory is a much-needed polemic in the ongoing debate around sexual politics, a debate which both encapsulates and the defines the ‘culture wars’. Language on the interface between the political and the sexual is constantly evolving and finding new conflicts that extend over the lines of both public discourse and private … Read more
For most, it’s rare that modern discussions of gender extend beyond screenshotted tumblr posts and miseducated arguments over gender, sex and their differences – but debating human identities is far from anything new. Like all western social norms, ‘gender’ stems from economic relationships with land, wealth and privilege. Your favourite youtuber may have helped remind … Read more
This article was first published in the latest edition of Forward. Pink capitalism refers to the marketisation of LGBT+ culture and the exploitation of the LGBT+ demographic by capitalist businesses for the purpose of a profit rather than for the authentic motive of altruistic care for the LGBT+ community. In recent years we have … Read more
During an otherwise quiet Christmas news week, a bizarre story has cropped up on the screens and papers of Irish readers. Mary Robinson, former president and a much feted and glorified patron of Irish liberalism, has had a fateful run-in with another prestigious brand of quasi-royalty – one of the ruling families of the United … Read more