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SALIS sponsored Marriage Equality Seminar at Mansion House

The School of Applied Languages and Intercultural Studies (SALIS) at DCU, hosted a Marriage Equality Seminar on 19th March 2015, in the Oak Room, at the Mansion House Dublin. The Seminar was opened by Cllr. Christy Burke, Lord Mayor of Dublin, who extended a warm welcome to SALIS and Marriage Equality.

Following an opening address by Grainne Healy, Researcher in SALIS, guest speaker Professor Lee Badgett (University of Massachuesetts Amherst) spoke about her research:  ‘The Marriage equality Experience:  An International Perspective’. The research dealt with the  perception of same sex marriage in European and North American Cultures, looking at countries and states as a social laboratory.  Professor Badgett elaborated on 3 main questions. 'Will gay people change marriage?' Her answer was “no”.  'Will marriage change gay people?' Her answer was “maybe”. Her last question addressed the issues raised by having a separate institution concluding that alternatives to civil marriage are not adequate substitutes.