Young gay man’s public stance tackles problem of homophobia

GAY community leaders have praised the public stance taken by a young gay man to highlight the persistent problem of homophobia in towns and cities.

Martin O’Sullivan, manager of the Southern Gay Men’s Health Project yesterday welcomed the brave decision of Joe O’Hara of Kilworth, Co Cork to go public about his own experiences as a gay man in his native Fermoy. He said Mr O’Hara’s decision to go public was very positive in raising awareness about homophobic attitudes in Irish society.

Mr O’Hara, aged 22 contacted several newspapers and radio stations to detail years of “pure hell” he had suffered because of his sexuality. He described how he had been subjected to regular verbal and sometimes physical abuse when he lived in Fermoy.