The Taoiseach has backed Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan for getting a controversial hugging consent video taken down, despite backlash from the opposition.
A social media video about children’s consent to receiving hugs from grandparents which was produced by the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC) was taken down on Thursday after receiving criticism.
Mr O’Callaghan said his department, which funded the video, told DRCC to take the “inappropriate and demeaning” ad down.
The intervention was criticised by some opposition politicians and a civil rights group.
On Friday, Mícheál Martin backed his Fianna Fáil colleague, agreeing with him that the video was inappropriate.
“I think it was inappropriate as an ad, clearly, and did cause offence to quite a number – but I don’t think that was intentional,” he said.
“I mean, a lot of grandparents would have been taken aback by that ad, if we are honest about it. I think we have to be very careful at how we balance all of this because counter-reactions gain momentum as a result of the situation.”
He added that criticism of the Justice Minister was a deliberate “political manoeuvre”.
On Thursday, Mr O’Callaghan took some credit for the video being taken down, releasing a statement and publishing social media posts to that regard.
“The video produced by the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre involving grandparents does not represent the views of the Government,” he said in the statement.
“It was both inappropriate and demeaning to grandparents, and has been removed by DRCC following my official’s engagement with them.”
He added: “While it is vital to ensure that people understand the concept of consent when it comes to sexual relationships, this video did not advance that aim and in many ways was counterproductive.”
However, the Justice Minister’s intervention was described as “unsettling” by the Irish Council of Civil Liberties.
It accused Mr O’Callaghan of interfering with the work of a non-profit organisation, partly funded by the Department of Justice, and pressuring it to pull and delete a video that seeks to educate people about consent.
It said “this worrying sequence of events” shows how State funding can “create pressure on civil society organisations to limit their advocacy and campaigning”.
It added: “Episodes like this risk creating a pervasive chilling effect and self-censorship within civil society, a risk we outlined in our report.
“They also raise serious questions about government or ministerial interference in the work of civil society.”
The move had been earlier criticised by Social Democrats justice spokesman Gary Gannon, who accused the minister of setting a “dangerous precedent” and creating a “pile-on” of the DRCC.
Mr Gannon said: “It makes me deeply uncomfortable that the Minister for Justice has used his Twitter account to create an online pile-on of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.
“It also appears to me a dangerous precedent that this minister, and his department, have instructed the rape crisis centre to remove content that he disapproved of.
“It should never be controversial to teach children about consent. That should start at a young age, it should begin in the home.”
Responding to Mr Gannon’s criticism, the Taoiseach said on Friday: “I think that was very wrong, of Gary.
“The pile-on was out long before Minister O’Callaghan spoke at all. I think there was kind of an instant reaction to it.
“That’s just the way it is. We live in a very febrile world, and particularly with the onset of social media.”
The video showed grandparents arriving at a home, where they are enthusiastically embraced by their grandson. Another child at the door looks uncomfortable when the older woman approaches for a hug and attempts to give her a kiss.
The video then cuts to text on screen reading: “Not everyone wants a hug. Even from the people who love them.”
It continues: “Awkward? Maybe. Important? Absolutely. We-Consent.ie is here to help.”
The video, and two others in the We-Consent campaign, were removed after the grandparent clip in particular was criticised online and by politicians.
The DRCC said it carried out workshops looking at experiences that made participants feel uncomfortable.
In a statement, a spokesperson for DRCC said the video reflected this feedback.
“We-Consent is a long-term campaign as part of Dublin Rape Crisis Centre’s prevention work to increase the awareness and practice of consent in Ireland,” they said.
“We created a video series for our social media channels based on feedback from over 20 consent workshops with younger and older people. Part of the workshops involved sharing participants’ own experiences of instances when they felt uncomfortable. The scenarios depicted in the video series came up very frequently in all the workshops.
“The videos were created with volunteers and staff, and reflected these conversations. We do not want that negativity to impinge on and distract from the vital work that we as a centre do in supporting victims and survivors and improving awareness of these important issues across society.”
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