Voters are being asked to change Ireland’s Constitution which says a woman’s place is in the home
PBS NewsHourMar 05
The Facts
On Friday — International Women's Day — Ireland held twin referendums to amend its 87-year-old constitution and remove the language of Article 41.2, which refers to the definition of family and women's role in the home.
The first referendum addresses a section of text that states that marriage is the basis "on which the family is founded." A yes vote would replace the wording with a clause that expands the definition of family to be founded "on marriage or other durable relationships."
The Spin
Narrative A
The Irish constitution was written when the Catholic Church still greatly influenced the country's government. Thus, it references some opinions that are no longer reconcilable with the progressive society of modern Ireland. Statements in the constitution containing sexist and outdated language should be changed to meet the times.
Narrative B
Changing the language of the Irish constitution may have unintended consequences. The vague language proposed to replace the statements about women in the home removes the government's responsibility to provide for caregivers, the vast majority of whom are women. While making the statement more gender-neutral would be fine, the amendment's language must retain the text's original meaning.
Narrative C
Ireland is already an extremely progressive country, ranked among the best in the world regarding gender equality. While the sentiment of changing the constitution to be more inclusive is nice, it's just semantics. Holding the vote on International Women's Day just contributes to the feeling that these proposed amendments are more of a tokenistic gimmick than anything else.
