The Referendum Victory: Why a huge yes and where we go from here

Abstract

The huge vote Yes to repeal the 8th Amendment hasfinally put an end to the myth that the Irish are anaturally ‘conservative’ people. In a short space oftime, the population voted in overwhelming numbers tosupport marriage equality and to liberalise abortion laws.It is not simply a matter of Ireland ‘catching’ up with therest of liberal Western Europe as if there were someinevitable mechanical path to ‘progress’.