- Music
- 10 Apr 17
They're all appearing at this month's A Night In The Key Of 8 gig in Dublin.
Some of the artists appearing at April 23's A Night In The Key Of 8 gig in the Olympia Theatre, Dublin have been talking about their support for the Repeal movement.
Confirmed to play are David Gray, Mary Black, Neil Hannon, Camille O'Sullivan, Loah, Le Galaxie, Lisa O'Neill, Printer Clips featuring Paul Noonan and guests, Róisín O and Wyvern Lingo.
"The fact that abortion remains illegal in Ireland is quite frankly staggering," Gray reflects. "There has to be a choice. I am more than happy to do any small thing I can to help draw attention to this issue. This is the 21st century not the dark ages, it needs to be put right."
Mother and daughter, Mary Black and Róisín, are united in their pro-choice stance.
“I’m honoured to be able to lend my voice to such an important movement," says the latter. "Women’s rights over their body is one thing that Ireland has left behind in our great leap forward as a country in the last 30 years. Personally I feel, that no matter what my views, or anyone else's in this country, are, we don’t have the right to force those views on any woman. Every woman should be entitled to make their own decisions about their body and that can only be achieved by repealing the 8th amendment.”
Adds Mary: “The 8th amendment discriminates against all women living in Ireland. The amendment equates the life of a pregnant woman with that of an embryo and has created an unworkable situation as was evidenced in the tragic death of Savita Halappanavar in Galway. This repeal will ensure that if a mother’s life it at risk from a pregnancy she will be protected."
Echoing those sentiments, Paul Noonan states: "“I think most Irish people now feel that the law is out of step with their compassion for women who are pregnant and distraught, and need to not be at least one of those things.I feel that repealing the 8th and replacing it with something more in line with that compassion will be another important milestone in our journey from theocracy to a more free society. This show will be a chance to gather singers and songs and talkers, with the people, in joyous resolve!"
Wyvern Lingo are equally militant in their Repeal stance.
"Abortion has not been an easy subject for us to discuss, but the Repeal the 8th movement has opened up this silenced and difficult topic," the trio reflect. "We see Repeal the 8th as a sign that Ireland is capable of moving beyond its oppressive past. The flawed 8th amendment is a constant reminder to us that, in spite of the surface equality and freedom some of us enjoy, we are in fact not equal in the eyes of the state or trusted with our own decisions.”
There will also be contributions on the night from the likes of Panti, journalists Una Mullally and Roisin Ingle, Senator Lynn Ruane, Poet Laureate Paul Meehan, and comedian Tara Flynn
who ventures: “The 8th has affected me directly. I had to travel for healthcare that should have been available to me at home. But I'm one of the lucky ones who was able to travel. We need to look after all our citizens, particularly those in vulnerable situations. We deserve equality and autonomy, the right to determine our own futures and what happens to our own bodies.”
“Repeal The 8th for me is about bodily autonomy," Panti says. "I believe that everyone should be free to make their own decisions about their own bodies. Women should be able to make their own informed decisions about their own health. And the rest of us should trust women to know what's right for them in their own circumstances.
I want to support the show because I want to support the women in my life, and because I think it's important to publicly show that support.”