It goes back to when they had the majority and they could do what they liked, and we had to suffer as their underlings.Īndrew: They enjoyed treating us like shit.Įoin: The big problem is that they feel that if one group gets rights it’s a defeat for them. John: If we are angry, it’s because we’ve all been so badly impacted by them. Me: I can see how angry you are about this. And the UUP are no champions of equality either.Īndrew: It’s not about genuine principle, it’s about their fear of losing control over their communities. They have blockedĮvery single move towards equality for LGBTQ+. John: The DUP is institutionally homophobic. He was convicted of homophobic harassment and the abuse stopped. In court, Templeton denied it, saying that when he was bending over it was to tie his shoe laces. The PSNI arrested Templeton and he was prosecuted, with John having to give evidence. He bent over in front of John in the street, pointed at his backside and shouted: “Here you are, John. Templeton followed him around the streets when John was canvassing, shouting “Gay bastard” and “Queer hole” and the like. Throughout 20, he was subjected to systematic homophobic harassment by a DUP councillor, Arthur Templeton. He knows all about fighting for the simple human right to be treated with respect. By his early 20s he was living in North Belfast with another man.
We talk about Jake Daniels, the English soccer player who came out last week, the first professional soccer player in the UK to do so in more than 30 years.Įoin Tennyson, fresh-faced as Peter Pan and at 24 the youngest MLA, says the importance of this cannot be overstated. This is because we are genuinely interested in politics, so we must listen carefully to each other.” “We’ve moved very far away from green and orange towards broad, global and local politics,” John says.
We discuss the recent seismic election results that saw the Alliance take 17 seats with their logical, socially progressive message. And on how sophisticated they are by the standards of Northern politicians. I remark on how respectful they and their party members are towards others.