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A SUPPORT NETWORK for gay and lesbian people working in An Garda Síochána has said there are still a huge number of people hiding their sexuality from their colleagues.
Gardaí Paul Clancy and Paul Franey have a stall at the Garda Representative Association (GRA) Conference for the first time this year and Franey will be giving a speech to delegates later today. The network was established in 2007, at a time when gay and lesbian gardaí were “essentially invisible” according to Franey.
He told TheJournal.ie that LGBT members of the force were beginning to come out to their colleagues but there were no support structures in place if they found themselves in a position where it was negatively received.
Coming out wasn’t the done thing. You knew your place and you kept your head down and got to work and continued what has been happening since the foundation of the guards.
Since then, however, Clancy said the force has evolved as Irish society became more accepting of the gay and lesbian community.
“I think the guards reflect society in a lot of ways and society has changed so much even since 2007 – it’s just more culturally accepted in schools particularly as well,” he commented. “I suppose a lot of people are not joining the guards at 18 necessarily, they’re a little bit older maybe early 20s and have lived a bit more I suppose.”
Invisible
Franey said today gay and lesbian people within the force have visibility and that is the main difference, as they were “invisible” before.
“What we’re about is bringing your whole self to work,” he explained. “People have often said it’s a private matter, it’s a personal matter but guards invite other guards to their weddings, they bring in pictures of their new babies, you know, their families and the things in their private life become integrated with their work colleagues and their teams and their units because it’s a team-based job.”
I suppose you can’t be fully part of the team if you’re only 50 per cent of yourself when you go to work and that’s the problem.
Franey said the LGBT gardaí have “come a long way” but there are still “a huge amount of people who are hiding every day”.
The two men said the end goal is for their support network not to exist anymore because it is no longer needed.
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It shouldn’t ever be a issue, it’s a personal decision for people, it’s also great that there’s support there.
They are hiding because the public will accuse them of being bent cops!
G Force are awesome, I had pleasure meeting them and they really are honest, decent Gardai. Wish them best of luck in their fight equality !!!
Gay Gardai? whatever will they think of next?
So, so many people in the closet in general. There’s just so many people out there who don’t realise their husband, father, brother, friend, colleague etc is actually gay. It’s a shame really that it’s possible to hide one’s sexuality. It just makes things so much more complicated…..
Hide ones sexuality? – isn’t it a fcuked up world that we live in where we think that our sexuality defines us? Live your life do your work love your family. The rest is for the birds.
I don’t know what I’d do if I found out my husband was gay!!
Very true. Why would anyone wish to parade their sexuality to the whole world? Are they trawling for injustices- real or imagined? Why not just do your job and live your life without pushing your private affairs into everyone else’s face? Such a form of exhibitionism is the cause of a lot of antipathy to gay persons. My advice is keep your private business to yourself and don’t assume you have the right to force others to become aware of them. Most people are not bothered and don’t care a whit whether others are gay or not.
#peepingass If your message is meant as a response to mine, I think you’ve missed my point. I was referring to the countless people who’ve lived their entire lives as a lie; feeling unable to reveal their true sexuality to their families, friends and colleagues. No one mentioned “parading” or “exhibitionism”. This initiative is simply about letting people know it’s ok to be who they are; that they don’t have to hide their real selves from the people in their lives.
That headline just doesn’t sound right. ….makes it sound like they’re hiding behind walls and bushes!
What sound does something written down make? What colour is a dogs bark?
My bad….apologies Mr Polar bear.
To catch people speeding obviously
The Polar Bear …. when you read aloud the ‘something’ written down then it has a sound and as the lady said, it doesn’t sound right.
It was a joke but thanks for explaining that. A joke is something that need not be taken seriously.
Onomatopoeia… I’m getting shudders thinking of English classes back in the day.
There is discrimination in the force, that is why many choose not to come out.
What a great cop-out word ‘discrimination.’ Very useful when one wants to get special and undeserved attention over and above what everyone else gets.
A police force has to reflect the community which it serves. Kudos to these two officers for having the courage and conviction to lead change in the Garda from within. Whatever your point of view, you’ll recognise that that what they’re doing cannot be easy.
So a Garda must be gay today and straight tomorrow- depending on the whim of the community served?
This is a non-issue for most Gardaí/ Just get over it- and yourselves.
G force.
Sounds like a cartoon.
Fair dues to them though it can’t be easy for them
It was a cartoon back in the 80′s
Must have heard it in the crib.
WTF?
Why does it matter… your are paid to be guards of the peace, get on with the job and do it to the best of your ability. Who you sleep with after work is of no interest to the vast majority of people or your work colleagues. What is the support group for? Is being gay a mental illness…? In fairness, the more the gay community strives for their equality the more it is trying to be different! Talk about a paradox.
That’s the point, institutions like the Gardai can foster certain prejudicial views. I’m not claiming that they do exist, however I would say that there are enough examples of this, to the point that these people have set up this association.
You’re making a bit of a leap there, just because a group is formed, does not mean that the target group are “sick”, for instance, in The US, there are associations for black/ethnic minority groups within society,
Also, you’re making no sense on your last point. Gay people are striving for equality and by trying to have themselves recognised as equal you’re claiming that they are in fact trying to be more different? That’s not a paradox created by people looking for equal rights, that’s one created by your skewed view of it.
Now that is it in a nutshell. Do your job and keep your business your own- no-one really cares one way or the other- people haven’t the time to be bothered about other folks business any more.
So you think two Gardaí driving around in a patrol car “don’t have time” to talk to each other about what they did at the weekend, or to ask if they have a partner etc etc? What sort of nonstop crazy busy job do you think it is?!
Pink Uniforms?
How dare you people red thumb me !! what’s wrong with the G-Force being in Pink uniforms driving around on pink motorbikes and looking fabulous while catching the bad guys?
Indigo, I’ve changed both your red thumbs to green just for the image you’ve given me of a pink-clad Irish CHIPS!
Gay people everywhere are hiding, though it is changing. Other people hide personal matters too… Unhappy marriages, mental illness, illiteracy, alcoholism, political views, physical deformities, embarassing family members….A long as society has taboos and people like privacy this will continue.
But introducing gay marriage will be surely a great comfort to those who do not want to hide and will also be a mark of respect. Society needs to do this to say that it is ok to be gay, and get to a stage where gay people do not feel the need to marginalise themselves into gay communities, gay bars etc. openness, empathy and integration are what is needed.
I’m sick and tired of all these cop stories. They never liked nor encouraged any attention to the force and now since the recent scandals, they’re on every social and broadcasting platform available pissin and moaning or trying to show us how to ride a motorcycle..outta my face!!
Eugene, when you become the victim of a crime, let’s see what you say about ‘outta my face’ to the Gardai. Muppet!
Toss er
I’m assuming he was being sarcastic and poking fun at those that are ‘sick of all the LGBT stories’ yet still click and comment. At least I hope he is….
Gardai hiding ?? Its not only the gay ones.
Dang. Comment removed. The sarcasm must have been lost on the moderator. Was merely trying to spark debate by pointing out the irrational reasons why people have a problem with LBGT in various fields. But These are actual fears of those of a homophobic disposition. Listing a few in a comment was intended to show the preposterousness of such views and little more but I accept you probably didn’t understand where I was going with it. Or perhaps I am reading too much into this and it was merely my spelling of Garda as guarda that was driving you mad. In that case fair enough…
Would the fashion police be part of this G-Force?
Huge numbers? 10000? 100000? 1000000?
@ Donal
10001 100001 1000001
Sorry my OCD got the better of me.
I’m off to wash my hands 15 times after touching my phone.
There is still a strong anti gay culture within the Gardai. The way this manifests for gay members has now become far more insidious and sophisticated. You get far less openly abusive comments or actions but there are multiple ways to still make life a misery for gay gardai which are still practiced. These range from being denied courses or promotions. Being given the most demeaning or difficult duties and overloading gay members with work. Having your work scrutinized with a fine tooth comb to find the slightest fault. Being isolated and almost shunned is still also a common feature. Deliberate actions from other members to try and get gay members into trouble with their bosses is still also practiced. All well known workplace bullying features still exist for gay members so its not surprising they hide their sexuality.
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