To mark the occasion and to reflect the huge importance of the Marriage Equality Referendum, this fortnight, Hot Press features two separate covers, featuring male and female same sex couples kissing.

The couples – Steph and Megan and Dean and Martin – were photographed sharing an intimate kiss with their same sex partners by Kathrin Baumbach specially for this issue's cover. Hot Press has always campaigned vocally on the issue of gay rights and equality, and the striking images make a clear statement about the value and integrity of same sex love, ahead of polling day on May 22.

In a powerful and controversial editorial urging a 'Yes' vote,Hot Press editor Niall Stokes writes:

"The referendum is essentially an equality issue. Why should a hugely significant proportion of the population be excluded from the right to marry? There is no basis for it at all, other than that vilest and most small-minded of motivations: discrimination against the 'other'."

He recalls the fact that thirty years ago, it was illegal in Ireland for gay men to have sex.

"Indeed, in 1983, in response to the case taken by gay rights activist David Norris, the Supreme Court here had specifically upheld the 'constitutionality' of the law which criminalised homosexual acts.

"David Norris, who is one of the great Irish heroes of recent times, had the courage of his convictions," he adds. "And he also had a powerful legal team, headed by Mary Robinson, who went on to become the President of Ireland. He took his case to the European Court of Human Rights and, in a landmark decision, in 1988, the court decided that the law criminalising same sex acts was contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights. It was a decision which changed the course of modern Irish history. But what if David Norris had run out of energy or felt unable to take his case to Europe? Where would we be now? It is a chastening thought."

He places the issue in the wider context of the anti-gay bigotry which was so prevalent in Ireland over the years, before concluding:
"A 'Yes' vote on May 22 is a vote for freedom. It is a vote for love. It is a vote for liberation. It is a vote for equality. It is a vote for the Republic. This is an opportunity to do the right thing by all of the people on this island – and by gay people all over the world. It is an opportunity for us to shine. It is an opportunity for us, as a people and as a democracy, to show the way. Vote yes. Let there be light."

Looking beyond the momentous vote, there's also a focus on Forbidden Fruit, which once again takes over Kilmainham for three days of – hopefully – sun soaked action. Fatboy Slim, Groove Armada and Matador all chat ahead of landing in Dublin, while funnyman Kevin McGahern brings the laughs.

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