A 20-YEAR-OLD article in which Ian Paisley jnr referred to gay people as “poofters” has caused a huge reaction online.
The Rainbow Project, an organisation that works to improve the physical and mental health of the LGBT community in Northern Ireland, posted the newspaper clip saying; “In preparation for our 25th birthday we have been scanning the archives and looking at our history. Have a look at this doozy from 1999.”
The article, which appeared in The Irish News on October 18 1999, gave details of drag queen beauty pageant to take place in the Kremlin nightclub in Donegall Street in Belfast.
The contest was said to be attracting contestants from both sides of the border, with a coach from Dublin bringing revellers to the nightclub.
A spokesperson for the club is quoted as saying: “It will be like Miss World and we’ll have the place done up really camp with lots of metal and gold.”
The article also quotes the then-MLA Mr Paisley, now MP for North Antrim, who said: “Nothing surprises me about how low the poofters will stoop. This is nothing but in your face poofery. It is a disgrace and demeans those who feel like they have a valid case.”
He added: “If they want to behave in a depraved manner I’m not surprised they want to do it on an all Ireland basis”.
Alliance Party MLA Naomi Long responded to the Rainbow Project post on Friday saying: “Jeez. He’s only a few years older than me and yet actually said the words ‘poofters’ and ‘In your face poofery’?
“Thankfully, 25 years on and you’re still here, going strong and standing up for rights and equality.”
The Rainbow Project responded to the archive news report by printing T-shirts for sale, to raise funds for the charity, with ‘In your face Poofery’ and ‘All Ireland Poofery’ emblazoned on them.
