Roderic O’Gorman won the leadership race to become head honcho in the Green Party. He had as much to say during his campaign for the leadership as he has had for the last number of years as Minister for Children. All style, no substance and choosing to die on the wrong hill time and again.
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| Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman |
In dealing with his critics, O’Gorman has relied on being gay as the card to play to show his progressive values. Being gay is neither a sign of being reactionary or progressive, it is a question of sexual orientation and plays no role in a person’s politics. Though he has been attacked by conservative Catholics and right-wing groups (other than the coalition parties) for being gay and recently played that card again in an article in the Irish Times. He stated that “Some people don’t think a gay man should be Minister for Children”.(1)
There is of course an element of truth to this, there are those who do hold such reactionary views. However, the article goes on to outline some of the real issues that are dear to his heart, that have earned him the opprobrium of many, amongst them, his support for the war in Ukraine and his support for hate speech legislation. There are other pressing issues as well, not mentioned, such as his government’s refusal to accept an amendment to his reactionary surrogacy bill that would exclude sex offenders from purchasing surrogate children. The Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, who alongside O’Gorman is one of three ministers who worked on the bill stated that:
it is envisaged that any issues relating to previous offences against children or women would be discovered through the safety of the child assessment.(2)
We know all too well how oversight bodies have worked in relation to child abuse in sporting bodies, schools, and even in the foster system. Though it should not surprise us that people who believe that wealthy people in the west should take advantage of poor and destitute women elsewhere to rent out their wombs and purchase their child is a good and even progressive value. If you can cast aside a woman in Ukraine (one of Ireland’s major surrogacy markets) then casting aside the safety of that child is a logical vile step.
The child protection agency TUSLA is a case in point and one for which responsibility lies directly at the door of O’Gorman who has seemed unperturbed by the numbers of children taken into state care who later go missing. As of June 16th 2024, 34 children were reported as missing from state care. One of them has been missing since 2022 and 13 since 2023. There are also reports of children going missing being targeted by sexual predators.(3)
The child protection agency TUSLA is a case in point and one for which responsibility lies directly at the door of O’Gorman who has seemed unperturbed by the numbers of children taken into state care who later go missing. As of June 16th 2024, 34 children were reported as missing from state care. One of them has been missing since 2022 and 13 since 2023. There are also reports of children going missing being targeted by sexual predators.(3)
O’Gorman was asked in the Dáil about the case of a 14-year-old girl who went missing from TUSLA and was found a year later locked up in a brothel. O’Gorman did not address the issue directly.(4) He deleted files sent to him by a retired judge in relation to missing children, claiming data protection regulations.(5) It is such blatant disregard for the wellbeing of children that is at the heart of the matter and not his sexuality, which is utterly irrelevant to the issue.
Alongside this O’Gorman was responsible for the ill-fated referenda which sought to remove any reference to women in the Constitution. The proposed wording was ill thought out and perilous in terms of women’s rights. He lied about the advice that he received from the Attorney General, something which came to the light in the run up to the vote and contributed to the absolute thrashing the government received at the hands of the electorate with the largest no votes ever received in a constitutional referendum in the history of the state.(6)
He has also been a prime advocate of thought crimes, or as he prefers to call it Hate Speech legistlation, a figure which has been used around the world not just against feminists, but also increasingly against Palestinian activists. On the issue of Palestine, O’Gorman has shown himself to be equally reactionary. In the midst of an Israeli blockade of food and medicine to Gaza he saw fit to defend an invite to the Israeli Ambassador to attend a famine memorial event, arguing that all ambassadors, with the exception of the Russian one, had been invited. He also rejected any calls for her expulsion.(7)
Not even on the environment does the Green Party shine. It has introduced bicycle lanes and an expensive neoliberal recycling scheme for plastic bottles which is guaranteed to make millions for the companies involved but not necessarily reduce our consumption of plastic. But the recycling companies may make a generous donation at some point. His government is not any different from previous ones in terms of the environment. In fact, it may even be worse. The Greens have always sought to prioritise profits for companies in any supposedly environmental schemes. Its real concern is greenwashing capitalism, rather than saving the environment.
O’Gorman is a thoroughly reactionary figure and incompetent to boot. His party hopes that he will boost their failing electoral fortunes. But he has shown himself, as with other Green leaders around the world, to be an unrepentant neoliberal reprobate, despite his sweet talk of progressive budgetary measures and an extremely misogynistic leader of a party and an opponent of free speech. Though, it has to be said, the Green Party has chosen an ideal leader to represent all the reactionary positions that party currently stands for.
Notes
(1) Irish Times (13/07/2024) Some people don’t think a gay man should be Minister for Children, says Green Party leader. Harry McGee.
(2) See.
(3) Irish Examiner (16/06/2024) Tusla reports that a total of 34 children in its care are missing. Ann Murphy.
(4) See.
(5) See.
(6) Irish Examiner (07/03/2024) Attorney General advised of ‘legal uncertainty’ in wording of Care referendum. Cianan Brennan. https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41348297.html the full advice of the Attorney General can be consulted here.
(7) The Journal (20/05/2024) Israeli ambassador at Irish famine event sparks criticism as govt pledges to maintain ‘pressure’
Alongside this O’Gorman was responsible for the ill-fated referenda which sought to remove any reference to women in the Constitution. The proposed wording was ill thought out and perilous in terms of women’s rights. He lied about the advice that he received from the Attorney General, something which came to the light in the run up to the vote and contributed to the absolute thrashing the government received at the hands of the electorate with the largest no votes ever received in a constitutional referendum in the history of the state.(6)
He has also been a prime advocate of thought crimes, or as he prefers to call it Hate Speech legistlation, a figure which has been used around the world not just against feminists, but also increasingly against Palestinian activists. On the issue of Palestine, O’Gorman has shown himself to be equally reactionary. In the midst of an Israeli blockade of food and medicine to Gaza he saw fit to defend an invite to the Israeli Ambassador to attend a famine memorial event, arguing that all ambassadors, with the exception of the Russian one, had been invited. He also rejected any calls for her expulsion.(7)
Not even on the environment does the Green Party shine. It has introduced bicycle lanes and an expensive neoliberal recycling scheme for plastic bottles which is guaranteed to make millions for the companies involved but not necessarily reduce our consumption of plastic. But the recycling companies may make a generous donation at some point. His government is not any different from previous ones in terms of the environment. In fact, it may even be worse. The Greens have always sought to prioritise profits for companies in any supposedly environmental schemes. Its real concern is greenwashing capitalism, rather than saving the environment.
O’Gorman is a thoroughly reactionary figure and incompetent to boot. His party hopes that he will boost their failing electoral fortunes. But he has shown himself, as with other Green leaders around the world, to be an unrepentant neoliberal reprobate, despite his sweet talk of progressive budgetary measures and an extremely misogynistic leader of a party and an opponent of free speech. Though, it has to be said, the Green Party has chosen an ideal leader to represent all the reactionary positions that party currently stands for.
Notes
(1) Irish Times (13/07/2024) Some people don’t think a gay man should be Minister for Children, says Green Party leader. Harry McGee.
(2) See.
(3) Irish Examiner (16/06/2024) Tusla reports that a total of 34 children in its care are missing. Ann Murphy.
(4) See.
(5) See.
(6) Irish Examiner (07/03/2024) Attorney General advised of ‘legal uncertainty’ in wording of Care referendum. Cianan Brennan. https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41348297.html the full advice of the Attorney General can be consulted here.
(7) The Journal (20/05/2024) Israeli ambassador at Irish famine event sparks criticism as govt pledges to maintain ‘pressure’
⏩ Gearóid Ó Loingsigh is a political and human rights activist with extensive experience in Latin America.
