Irish Rugby star Cian Healy has received an insane amount of traction over a tweet he posted last night referring to Maser’s Repeal The 8th Mural.
His tweet, which has subsequently been deleted reads,
Ya ain’t alternative unless you’re in front of a blue wall these days
— Cian Healy (@ProperChurch) July 26, 2016
The mural was removed yesterday from outside the Project Arts Center, amidst protesters who painted their faces blue in defiance with Dublin City Council. After the mural was painted over, protesters stood by the wall to highlight how abortion is an issue in Irish society that has been brushed over for far too long.
We visited the #repealthe8th protest at @projectarts this morning. Check out the galleryhttps://t.co/YisTeNtc1Z pic.twitter.com/CK4yHiJmr8
— Hot Press (@hotpress) July 26, 2016
Healy’s comments struck a serious nerve on Twitter and people mostly took umbrage over how he seemed to trivialize and belittle such a serious issue.
https://twitter.com/LeanneWoodfull/status/758078627661680641
too many knocks to the head or just ignorance? Disappointing #repealthe8th
— Sheena (@sheena4one) July 26, 2016
Since posting, Healy has retraced his statement and claimed ignorance.
Sorry for any offence caused. no political slamming on my part, nor none intended. But cheers for your lovely messages 👍
— Cian Healy (@ProperChurch) July 27, 2016
Ignorance on my part to what the "blue wall" was. Merely reacted to seeing it all over my timeline.
— Cian Healy (@ProperChurch) July 27, 2016
The jury is out over whether Healy, an active Twitter user, actually knew what he was posting about, considering how much the mural has been in the press these past few weeks.
It really is such a shame to see a prominent Irish figure belittle an issue that deserves to be discussed in the way Healy has. Aligning the repeal the eight movement to a hipster fad not only insults the vast array of women who have had abortions, it also ostracizes people from the movement.
have you been covering your eyes when they're tagging #repealthe8th with these photos?
— Cailín Deas (@Serdihdevine_) July 27, 2016
I'm just a boy standing in front of a blue wall asking someone to … #repealthe8th pic.twitter.com/0DgALZQ3or
— polly molotov ♥️💙💚💛💜💖🍍 (@NursepollyRgn) July 27, 2016
https://twitter.com/ciaragemmam/status/758237148592140289
https://twitter.com/CorkGAAbanter/status/758258799278948352
Lest we forget, Healy also doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to discussing equality issues on Twitter.
Maybe Healy should just stick to what he’s good at.
