Colin Farrell writes open letter urging Irish to vote for gay marriage

Following on from his declaration of support for the impending same-sex marriage referendum in 2015, actor Colin Farrell, star of ‘Alexander’ and the upcoming second season of ‘True Detective,’ has penned an open letter in the Irish Sunday World.

The letter addresses the personal nature of Farrell’s support for same-sex marriage – the fact that Colin’s brother Eamon is gay and the challenges and bigotry he faced his whole life has galvanized Colin into taking a stand. Farrell speaks of his brother’s sense of pride in himself in the face of adversity growing up:

“Even when others were casting him out with fists and ridicule and the laughter of pure loathsome derision, he maintained an integrity and dignity that flew in the face of the cruelty that befell him.”

When Eamon had to travel to Canada to marry his long term partner, Colin decided enough was enough.

“The fact that my brother had to leave Ireland to have his dream of being married become real is insane.”

Farrell stresses the point that same-sex marriage is not just an issue for LGBT people, but rather for all Irish people, regardless of sexuality.

“This for me is all about the heart, not the gender. If it’s about the idea of love between consenting adults, then this referendum is as much a heterosexual issue as it is a gay issue.”

Farrell closes out his letter with an impassioned call to action to the people of Ireland:

“How often do we get to make history in our lives? Not just personal history. Familial. Social. Communal. Global. The world will be watching. We will lead by example. Let’s lead toward light.”

Farrell’s letter supports the Yes Equality campaign, which is currently running a voter registration drive across the country. Despite the fact that opinion polls show the Irish public is in favor of same-sex marriage with support of about 70%, many are worried that not enough supporters are registered to vote. As the November 25 deadline looms, pro-civil marriage groups are intensifying their efforts to ensure their supporters are registered to vote.

For anyone in Ireland who wants to vote in the 2015 referendum, you must register by November 25. Details on how to register can be found here: www.yesequality.ie.