Sir, – Much has been said in recent days about the impact of social media on young men, in light of the Netflix show Adolescence. Much-needed conversations have been had about the importance of raising young men to be a force for good in society, and crucially, about the need to eradicate violence against women. Insightful articles, such as the piece by Eoghan Cleary (Your Family, March 22nd), have been penned and published. We talk about violence, sex, masculinity, pornography, and social media. But what is missing from so many of these conversations is the ultimate price society will pay if we fail to tackle this issue: the loss of lives of young men.
Young men are dying by suicide in staggering numbers in this country. Due to under-resourcing, up-to-date statistics can be difficult to obtain but according to the latest CSO statistics, 79 per cent of those who died by suicide in 2022 were men. Among young men aged under 25, suicide was the number one cause of death in 2019. World Health Organisation data shows that male adolescents aged 15 to 19 report higher than average suicide rates.
We have an epidemic of suicide among our men. An epidemic which is getting nowhere near enough coverage, funding or resources. Through my work on mental health and suicide prevention in the EU and Ireland over the past number of years, I know the door is not always open to pushing these issues onto the political or media agenda. Leaving me to wonder if a death by suicide was reported similarly to how road traffic accidents are covered in the press, would resources increase and stigma decrease?
Despite the fact that young men continue to take their own lives, it has taken a hit Netflix show to place the issue of male mental health on the radar of political and media commentators. As these conversations continue, we must remember that without any meaningful action, the lives of our sons, brothers, fathers and friends are on the line. – Yours, etc,
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MARIA WALSH, MEP
(Fine Gael, Midlands-North West constituency),
Brussels.
Anti-Hamas protests in Gaza
Sir, – Is it not strange that none of the many protest marches held in Ireland in support of Gaza have featured banners, etc, calling for Hamas to disarm and hand back its Jewish hostages? Yet now ordinary Gazans are risking torture or death at the hands of Hamas to make that simple and obvious demand (“Threats made to anti-Hamas protesters”, World, March 28th). – Yours, etc,
KARL MARTIN,
Dublin 13.
Sex work and lobby groups
Sir, – While reflecting on Dublin’s history of sex work, Diarmaid Ferriter misses some important points when referring to the current situation (“A century after the Monto, street prostitution has been replaced by sordid networks run by pimps”, Opinion & Analysis, March 28th).
Prof Ferriter references Ruhama, but fails to mention that organisation was established by the Good Shepherd Sisters and the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity, both previously better known for running some of Ireland’s Magdalene laundries. Even up to very recent years, nuns still sat on Ruhama’s board.
Similarly, the reference to the National Women’s Council should have noted that Ruhama is a key member of the council and has a strong influence on its policies, priorities and direction, particularly when it comes to the issue of sex work.
When we talk about sex work in Ireland, the most important voices should be those of the mainly – but not exclusively – women who engage in sex work, rather than heavily State-funded organisations with links to Ireland’s dark history of imprisoning women for the crimes of being pregnant outside of marriage or simply being women.
With that in mind, attention should be given to the position of organisations like Sex Workers Alliance Ireland and their reaction to the long-overdue report on operation of the 2017 legislation criminalising various aspects of sex work in Ireland.
Unsurprisingly, the report finally published this week shows the law has failed in its main objective of decreasing demand for sex work in Ireland and has only increased fear and distrust among sex workers and further endangered them. Ultimately, the 2017 law is Ireland’s modern version of a puritanical heavy-hand aiming to crush sex work by any means necessary.
I would suggest that readers, and perhaps Prof Ferriter himself, pick up a copy of Wrong Women by Caroline West and Revolting Prostitutes by Juno Mac and Molly Smith. Both books are extremely illuminating on the issue of sex work in Ireland. – Yours, etc,
TOMÁS HENEGHAN,
Dublin 3.
Roads and utility hatches
Sir, – At a recent site meeting with our building firm for the construction of 34 social housing units locally, considerable time was taken up by the design team discussing the requirements of, and difficulties liaising with, different utility companies and their scheme ductal requirements. Comparison was made with the Australian system of installing large multipurpose ducts during construction. All utility providers then access it when needed.
This would hugely reduce the disruption to road surfaces that varying utilities seem to continually need to undertake.
The sharing of single large ducts for sometimes complementary or competing utility providers should be a no-brainer and is one of the reasons why the road surface in Australian cities is a lot smoother than the hotchpotch of potholes and metal access drains and portals and repair attempts that litter and destroy our road surfaces. – Yours, etc,
Dr PAUL ARMSTRONG,
Habinteg Housing,
Lifford,
Co Donegal
Mammies for Trans Rights
Sir, – The ICD-11 (International Statistical Classification of Diseases) has recently been revised to reflect “modern understanding of sexual health and gender identity” and the current knowledge that “trans-related and gender diverse identities are not conditions of mental ill-health and that classifying them as such can cause enormous stigma” (World Health Organisation, 2025).
While it is disappointing that policy in Ireland has seen a shift in relation to gender, it is far from the first time in Irish history that our policies were outdated, harmful to vulnerable groups and in opposition to international best practice. We remember well the Repeal campaign and the extreme damage done to women and pregnant people by an Irish health policy which pretended that people didn’t have a need for medicine, pretended that treatment didn’t happen, when in reality Ireland outsourced its problems and abandoned our people to seek care overseas. We are doing the exact same thing again – this time to trans people.
Things being said about the gender spectrum today are a repeat of comments made on sexuality a generation ago. We now recognise that these were based on prejudice and very harmful to the young LGBTQIA+ people of those times. We also know now that simply acknowledging the existence of groups and including them in the language we use has an enormously positive impact on their mental and physical health.
The 2019 review of primary and post-primary relationships and sexuality education (RSE)curriculums reported that students frequently cite friends and the internet as sources of information about relationships and sexuality and that many parents struggle to know how to approach conversations with their children. Schools are in a unique position to provide a space where children can discuss these matters in an informed, thoughtful and open manner alongside their peers. When we don’t provide good quality and age-appropriate information to children we know that they will go to other, frequently less reliable sources, sometimes with tragic consequences.
We may have our individual views on medicine and treatment, but the international standard (ICD-11) gives us a better understanding of trans people and how we support them and their medical requirements. There is a global consensus on gender identity and in respect of trans people. Individuals may seek to dispute that, to appear “edgy”, for financial gain or to deflect attention from the real and pressing social issues we are facing, but we cannot ignore the global consensus just because we don’t like it.
Ultimately, we must make sure that all our children feel safe and included in their classrooms and in our world. – Yours, etc,
KAREN SUGRUE,
CLAIRE FLYNN,
BERNIE LINNANE,
JUDE COPELAND,
Mammies for Trans Rights,
Limerick.
Dublin City Half Marathon
Sir, – The Dublin City Half Marathon on Sunday was wonderful to see. The route passed my house and I loved watching the runners go by. There was such a buzz in the air. The crowds were brilliant too.
A massive thank you to all the volunteers who made this happen. Especially those who helped with the clean up post race.
The 9km mark was beside my house. My husband and I picked up clothes, plastic cups, broken headphones, tissues, you name it, it was there on the ground to be picked up.
But the absolute worst has to be the discarded energy gels. Hundreds in my area alone, we picked up what we could.
What can be done to tackle these packets? Given that their contents are so sticky I doubt they are recyclable. Is it time they went the way of the plastic straw and simply banned? Maybe an energy gel levy? Or more sustainable packaging?
Surely there is better and more environmentally friendly way for runners to get a carbohydrate boost during a race? – Yours, etc,
SIOBHÁN McDERMOTT,
Dublin 5.
