July is Disability Pride Month, a time to celebrate and uplift queer disabled people who work to make the world more inclusive for everyone. While increased visibility and allyship are encouraging change, many still feel excluded by those without disabilities, and there remains much to fight for to achieve true equality. In this piece, you’ll find seven queer and disabled individuals making an impact in Ireland, who you should follow and support.
Suzy Bryne
Suzy Byrne is a long-time advocate whose work spans both LGBTQ+ and disability rights. She played a key role in the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the 1990s as part of GLEN (Gay and Lesbian Equality Network) and served as chairperson of the International Lesbian and Gay Youth Organisation. She was also involved with GCN during its early years – before the digital era.
In addition to LGBTQ+ activism, she has been a strong voice in the disability movement. She told Disabled Women Ireland (DWI)—an organisation founded with her leadership—that “people with disabilities need to claim who they are, claim their space in society and be respected”. For Suzy, non-disabled people often ignore the daily struggles faced by disabled folks, pushing them into the shadows with phrases like “we don’t care what your disability is”. She takes pride in being a disabled woman and hopes women’s organisations and the State will acknowledge the unique forms of discrimination disabled women face.
Ollie Bell
Ollie Bell is a passionate activist for LGBTQ+ rights and founded Trans and Intersex Pride Ireland in 2018. Before that, they were active in the Marriage Equality campaign. Since then, they’ve worked as an LGBTQ+ educator, running workshops in secondary schools aimed at creating safer environments for queer youth. Their mission is to empower students to become changemakers in their schools. Ollie is disabled/neurodivergent (AuDHD) and actively campaigns for more accessible Pride events. They wrote in GCN that “The interconnection of disability and queerness along with the far-right’s use of one to prop up the other shows the real need for Pride to be accessible.”
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Blezzing Dada
Blezzing Dada, a Black-Irish activist, uses her lived experience to advocate for inclusive mental health care and social justice. She has faced significant challenges, including homelessness, illness, and financial hardship, but continues to champion intersectional health support. For her, everything is political – including mental health. She believes we cannot address mental health without tackling systemic issues like racism, healthcare inequities, and housing instability. Blezzing highlights the specific struggles of racialised communities dealing with mental health issues and reminds them that there is always hope and support. As they wrote in the Irish Independent: “We need to recognise societal problems such as racism, homophobia and ableism in the mental health conversation”.
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Katie-George Dunlevy
Katie-George Dunlevy is Ireland’s most decorated Paralympian, adding gold and silver medals to her collection at the Paris Games last year. She came out at age 29, navigating a sports world where queerness isn’t always visible. Despite this, she found strong support from her team and had a positive experience. Her goal is to inspire visually impaired children and show that everyone belongs in sport. As she puts it, “Sport should be a place where everyone feels safe, respected, and empowered to be their true selves.”
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Alber Saborío
Alber Saborío is a Honduran AuDHD artist and sex educator whose work, based in Ireland, explores themes of gender, trauma, diaspora, and sexual violence through visual media. They are the co-founder and co-director of gender.RIP, a trans-led, anti-capitalist multidisciplinary collective (which is currently on hiatus). Alber served as a judge at the 2019 Dublin Fringe Festival, and their work ‘Transgender Desirability’ was exhibited at Pallas Projects as part of The Queeratorial. They are a bold and vital voice in Ireland’s queer arts scene and currently run events for queer disabled folk.
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Áine O’Hara
Áine O’Hara is a multidisciplinary artist, theatre-maker, and festival director who lives with several chronic illnesses, including fibromyalgia. She told Arts and Disability Ireland that “experiences and history also often influence the work I make.” Áine’s work focuses on creating space for those often excluded from traditional arts venues. While she’s grateful for the support she has received, she remains concerned about the sustainability of her career due to low pay. She advocates for higher wages or universal basic income for disabled artists. A proud moment in her career was performing in the National Youth Theatre’s It Only Ever Happens In The Movies at the Abbey Theatre’s Peacock Stage in 2013. Since then, she has presented work across the Irish arts scene, including at Dublin Fringe Festival 2024. She was also an organiser of Disrupt Disability Arts Festival 2024 and is now a curator with Chronic Collective, who runs the Chronic Connections networking initiative for sick and disabled artists.
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Alannah Murray
Alannah Murray is a prominent queer disability rights activist in Ireland. Through their writing, often published in GCN, and their keen interest in law, they advocate for legislative changes in the quest for an equal society for all. An aspiring barrister, they have also been nominated as Law Student of the Year at the Irish Law Awards 2025.
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These incredible queer and disabled individuals—artists, activists, and athletes—are breaking boundaries every day in Ireland. Thanks to their work and the continued efforts of others, the future promises a more inclusive world for all.
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