A load of fellas wearing suits, pretending to be politicians’ – why our youngsters are finding it tough to cope with politics

  6 hrs ago

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A number of the country’s biggest youth political parties have recently been caught up in a series of controversies, seen resignations or calls to quit.

The youth branches of political parties are normally how politicians get their start before going on to become local area representatives, councillors and TDs.

However, some young people are leaving parties after having bad experiences within youth organisations.

Christine O’Mahony (23), who was an active member of Ógra Sinn Féin and is a former chair of the UCD branch, quit the party after she said it was “unwelcoming” when she openly criticised it.

She said she was asked by the party to delete tweets that criticised the party’s stance on the greyhound industry, and a member of the party visited her at home to ask her to delete a tweet criticising a TD.

She later gave her views to a radio station, which she says were not well-received by party members.

She also received intense abuse on social media.

“I went to a couple of Ógra Sinn Féin members and they weren’t helpful at all, and I was treated like an outcast for going to the media,” she said.

“They make the party very unwelcoming when you want to stand up.

“Being from a marginalised community – both a person of colour and from the LGBTQIA community – I wasn’t going to sit there and take it.”

Ms O’Mahony said she received a slew of online abuse after openly criticising the party, including receiving two emails which urged her to stop “lying” and “complaining” about Sinn Féin.

After receiving two death threats online, she filed an official complaint with gardaí.

“I said I don’t really feel safe because people know where I live in the countryside,” she said.

“It’s scarred me for life.”

She left the party and after a brief stint in the Social Democrats, is no longer a member of any political party as she wants to focus on a career in journalism.

Ógra Fianna Fáil recently saw a motion fail to pass seeking to remove its president, Bryan Mallon, who criticised “toxicity” and “negativity” within the youth wing.

Members in top positions also resigned before the vote for the motion, including the chair of its National Council.

One former member who held a high-level position in the youth wing who contacted the Irish Independent and asked to remain anonymous said there are “rotten apples” within the organisation.

Young Fine Gael also recently witnessed a slew of prominent resignations, with the national secretary, the Dublin regional organiser and Munster regional organiser stepping down.

Art O’Mahony (23), the president of Young Fine Gael, said he will take a break from politics after his tenure is over.

“I don’t see myself going down any straight political route necessarily and I think to be honest, that’s healthy,” he said.

“Youth politics, for worse really, has become a place where you’d see an awful lot of culture wars being waged.”

He said people in youth politics can take themselves “too seriously”.

“I do think people are taking themselves too seriously these days and that can be summed up by statements being put out by individuals.

“YFG is no different to anybody else and there’s times when even we as an executive take ourselves too seriously and think we’re the United Nations Security Council,” he said.

“I think in order to improve and get the best people involved, you have to kind of reflect what being young is actually like,… as opposed to just being a load of young fellas wearing suits, pretending to be politicians.”

In regards to any accusations of bullying or misogyny within the party, he said all parties are “male dominated and it’s not a good thing”.

“If there is an actual case or a real feeling of misogyny or bullying, a complaint of that nature should of course be taken seriously,” he said, adding that there is now a YFG Women’s Network in place.

The Greens have also not avoided their fair share of young people opting to leave. It previously saw the chairpersons of Young Greens and Queer Greens resign and splinter group Just Transition set up.

New political party An Rabharta Glas was established by former members of the party by ex-Green Party councillor Lorna Bogue.

Former Green Party member Criodán Ó Murchú (23), who was involved in the Greens but quit shortly after the party went into Government, said a divide emerged in the party when the Programme for Government was being formed.

“There was a group that was essentially hellbent on getting into government,” he said, which involved “certain senators and councillors” with “whatever the level of compromise was required”.

“There was a very noticeable divide between the youth wing, which was very much in favour of not engaging with the Programme for Government and the older, more established membership, being very much like, ‘This is our only chance’.”

He also said his female friends had bad experiences within the party and claimed there is a “significant misogynistic aspect to the party”.

“There would be less recognition of their inputs, talking over or not including them in discussions, they were kept on the periphery,” he said.

A spokesperson for the Green Party said the party takes matters of “dignity and respect very seriously”.