2018 has been a memorable year for the Irish LGBT+ community with GCN reporting on over 1,400 stories on our site alone. Here are just some of the milestones and highlights for Ireland’s LGBT+ community over the past 365 days.

JANUARY

January 20: Trans Healthcare March Takes Place in Dublin

Hundreds of people march to Leinster House to petition the government for better access to healthcare for trans people.

January 24: Ireland Says No To TERFs

An Irish feminist collective of over 1,000 individuals sign an open letter to British trans-exclusionary radical ‘feminists’ (TERFs) who were planning an event in Dublin telling them they were not welcome here.

FEBRUARY

February 10: GCN Turns 30 On February 10 we remembered the day in 1986 when GCN was founded by Tonie Walsh and Catherine Glendon.

MARCH

March 6: LGBT Ireland Launch

In Dublin’s Mansion House, the Minister for Children And Youth Affairs, Dr Katherine Zappone, TD, officially launches LGBT Ireland as a national service provider and advocacy organisation.

March 14: Irish Legislation To Ban Conversion Therapy Launches

The legislation aims to prohibit conversion therapy as a deceptive and harmful act or practice against a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression.

APRIL

April 16: Radical Queers Resist Hold Counter Protests Against An Extreme Anti-Abortion Group

Radical Queers Resist, a queer group fighting for change through direct action, organise counter protests in response to an extremist anti-abortion group specifically targeting LGBT+ spaces.

April 23: Maser’s ‘Repeal’ Mural At Project Arts Centre Is Taken Down

The Artistic Director of the Project Arts Centre, Cian O’Brien, is forced by the Charities Regulator to paint over the iconic Maser mural on the building’s wall.

MAY

May 26: The Eighth Amendment is Repealed

The Irish electorate pass the referendum to repeal the Eighth Amendment of the Irish Constitution. The Amendment, inserted in 1983, recognised the equal right to life of the mother and the unborn child. It forced a situation where women with unwanted pregnancies had to travel to the UK or buy illegal abortion pills online.

May 31: Dáil Votes To Remove Baptism Barrier

Legislation to remove the controversial ‘baptism barrier’ is passed by The Dáil following a late night debate. The Education (Admission to Schools) Bill outlaws the baptism barrier which allowed the Church to insist a child be baptised before they could be admitted into Catholic primary schools.

JUNE

June 1: Thousand March To Demand Marriage Equality In Northern Ireland

Over 20,000 people take to the streets of Belfast to call on UK Prime Minister Theresa May to legislate for marriage equality in Northern Ireland.

June 1: Michael D Higgins Calls For Greater Respect Around Gender

Delivering the Sixth Annual Harri Holkeri Lecture at Queen’s University, the President says, “We have to get gender issues right. We have to pay attention to sex education so people of different genders and fluid genders can look forward to living.”

June 5: Belfast Hosts First Ever Trans Pride Rally In Ireland

Hundreds attend a Trans Pride rally held in Writer’s Square while organisers promise next year’s event will be “twice the size”.

June 7: Dublin Pride Launches Reimagined Pride Guide

The Dublin LGBTQ Pride Guide 2018 takes on a more editorial feel featuring interviews with and stories from the community. Dublin Pride’s 2018 theme ‘We Are Family’ is celebrated throughout the 124 pages.

June 20: An Taoiseach Makes An Emotional Apology To Thousands Who Were Convicted For Being Gay In Ireland

The Government issues an official apology to those affected by the criminalisation of homosexual acts in Ireland, legislation that was repealed 25 years ago in June.

June 22: Motion To Further Include The Trans Community In Women’s Council Of Ireland Unanimously Passes 

Proposed by BeLonG To and seconded by TENI. the motion was brought forward by trans activist and Grand Marshal of Dublin Pride 2018, Sara R Phillips.

June 24: PrEP Programme Announced For 2019

Leo Varadkar announces that the HSE is developing plans and guidelines for an access programme for PrEP as part of the sexual health strategy.

June 24: 25th Anniversary of Decriminilisation

At an event in Dublin Castle marking the 25th anniversary of decriminilisation, Leo Varadkar tells an audience of 700 that “work has begun” to remove the criminal convictions of those prosecuted for homosexuality saying “an apology is just an apology, we want to go further and expunge those convictions as well.”

June 28: Vicious Attack On Married Couple In Laois Prompts Urgent Calls For Hate Crime Legislation

After Gui and his husband Collie were savagely beaten in a homophobic attack, calls rise for inclusive hate crime legislation to convict those guilty of homophobic and transphobic attacks. NXF board member Adam Long says that securing the enactment of comprehensive Hate Crime legislation is a major priority for the National LGBT Federation, and they will continue to campaign and lobby on the issue until Ireland is brought in line with comparable countries.

June 29: Minister Zappone Pledges €400,000 Per Annum For Action On The National LGBTI+ Youth Strategy

At the launch of the Youth Strategy, Minister Zappone pledges the funding and says all government departments are unilaterally on board to support the implementation.

JULY

July 2: Parade Doubles In One Year As 60,000 People Attend Dublin Pride

Over 60,000 people take to the streets to celebrate the Pride Parade in Dublin including former President Mary McAleese and her family, as well the Defence Forces, who take part for the first time ever.

July 3: Teen Released Without Charge For Throwing Brick At Pantibar

A man in his late teens is released without charge despite causing “criminal damage” to Pantibar after throwing a brick through the window emblazoned with the words ‘Píteoga Amach As Eireann’ which literally translates as ‘Fairies Out Of Ireland’.

July 5: Amendments To The Children And Family Relationships Act Are Approved

The amendments come over three years after the Marriage Equality Bill was passed. Although welcome, they don’t go far enough for many same-sex families as they do not encompass surrogacy.

July 30: 1,000 People Join First Ever Dublin Trans Pride

Trans activists and allies take to the streets for the first ever Trans Pride Dublin to protest the numerous struggles still being fought by the community.

AUGUST

August 10: Team Ireland Triumph At Gay Games

Team Ireland compete in the tenth international Gay Games and bringing home numerous medals and personal bests.

August 23: Rainbow Choir Hold Peaceful Protest Outside WMoF Congress

The rainbow choir is co-organised by Ursula Halligan, part of the group ‘We Are Church’, in response to their application to attend the Congress of WMoF being ignored by organisers.

SEPTEMBER

September 3: GCN Launches Petition As Panti Vows To March Down O’Connell Street At Pride 2019

A petition is launched asking An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to ensure that from next year on, Dublin Pride has right to march down O’Connell Street instead of being diverted on to side streets. It currently has 9,243 signatures and will be sent to An Taoiseach’s office upon reaching 10,000.

OCTOBER

October 3: ‘Raise The Roof’ Rally Protesting The Housing Crisis Takes Place In Dublin

The rally is organised in response to the escalating housing crisis, a growth in the number of people forced into homelessness and untenable issues within the private rental market.

October 5: Simon Harris Introduces Bill Legalising Abortion Services In The Dáil

The bill is largely welcomed by TDs, though many voice concerns over the 72-hour waiting period.

NOVEMBER

November 9: NXF Launches LGBT Migrants Report

The National LGBT Federation release the results of their migrant survey. The report makes a number of recommendations to policy makers including a need to facilitate greater access to mental health services for LGBT+ migrants; LGBT+ cultural competency training for all public service employees; an end to the system of Direct Provision and a review of the asylum application process.

November 11: Michael D Higgins Is Re-Elected As President Of Ireland

President Higgins uses his re-election ceremony to call out those who used words to stoke the res of bigotry. He reminds onlookers that “Words matter. Words hurt. Words empower. Words can divide.”

November 20: Trans Day Of Remembrance Held

Events take place across Dublin to mourn lives lost to transphobic violence.

November 27: Study On LGBTI+ Youth Homelessness Is Launched By BeLonG To And Focus Ireland

The research is the first of its kind in Ireland and will document young LGBT+ people’s experience of homelessness.

November 28: Five Irish Party Leaders Take Rapid HIV Tests

Party leaders from the Green Party, Labour Party, Social Democrats, Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil take Rapid HIV tests at an event organised by HIV Ireland.

DECEMBER

December 1: Leo Varadkar Becomes First Taoiseach To Publicly Take A HIV Test

To mark World AIDS Day, Leo Varadkar releases a video in partnership with GCN in which he takes a Rapid HIV test to encourage others to get tested regularly and reduce stigma.

December 4: Marriage Equality Pioneer Ann Louise Gilligan Has Lecture Hall Named In Her Honour

Dublin City University names a lecture hall after the late Ann Louise Gilligan, the beloved marriage equality campaigner and wife to children’s minister Katherine Zappone. Gilligan passed away last year after a brief illness.

December 5: Irish Government Misses Deadline To Grant Equal Parental Rights To Same-Sex Parents

The Government misses its own deadline to provide LGBT+ women who are same-sex parents the same parental rights as their straight counterparts. Amendments to The Children and Family Relationships Act were due to come into eff ect at the beginning of December but, having missed the deadline, are once again pushed back, for the sixth time.