The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC) has removed a video, filmed as part of its We-Consent campaign, from its social media pages following criticism, as well as intervention from Ireland's Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan.
The DRCC video shows two children opening the door to their home to greet their excited grandparents. While one child quickly moves in for a hug, the other child stands back, looking unsure.
As the grandparents move in to give the second child a hug, the child cringes.
"Not everyone wants a hug," the ad says, "Even from the people who love them.
"Awkward? Maybe. Important? Absolutely."
An Irish government funded advert from Dublin Rape Crisis Centre had depicted a young girl recoiling before a hug from her grandparents. It has received widespread criticism online, with the Irish Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan commenting online: “The video produced by the DRCC involving grandparents does not represent the views of the Government. "It was both inappropriate and demeaning to grandparents and has been removed by DRCC following my officials engagement with them.”
— The Irish News (@irish_news) October 22, 2026
The video is a part of the DRCC's We-Consent campaign, which the organization describes as "a long-term national campaign to inform, educate and engage with all members of Irish society about consent." The campaign is supported by Ireland's Department of Justice as well as the Community Foundation Ireland.
On Thursday, however, the video had been pulled from the DRCC's online profiles following criticism, as well as intervention from Ireland's Minister for Justice, Jim O'Callaghan.
Among those criticizing the video was TD Peadar Tóibín, head of the Irish political party Aontú. On social media, he wrote: "Equating a hug from a granny to a grandchild with relationship consent between adults is absolutely wrong. The government owes grandparents an apology."
Charlie Flanagan, Ireland's former Minister for Justice, said the video is "a deeply hurtful & highly offensive portrayal of grandparents & families in today's Ireland," adding that the Department of Justice and Irish Government "have questions to answer."
In a statement on Thursday, Justice Minister O'Callaghan said that the DRCC's We-Consent video "does not represent the views of the Government."
He continued: "It was both inappropriate and demeaning to grandparents and has been removed by DRCC following my official’s engagement with them.
“It goes without saying that having loving grandparents in a child’s life is an incredibly positive thing to be cherished and not something to be campaigned against.
"While it is vital to ensure that people understand the concept of consent when it comes to sexual relationships, this video did not advance that aim and in many ways was counterproductive.”
It goes without saying that having loving grandparents in a child’s life is an incredibly positive thing to be cherished and not something to be campaigned against.
— Jim O'Callaghan TD (@OCallaghanJim) October 22, 2026
In a statement to RTÉ News, DRCC said: "We-Consent is a long-term campaign as part of Dublin Rape Crisis Centre's prevention work to increase the awareness and practice of consent in Ireland.
"We created a video series for our social media channels based on feedback from over 20 consent workshops with younger and older people.
"Part of the workshops involved sharing participants’ own experiences of instances when they felt uncomfortable. The scenarios depicted in the video series came up very frequently in all the workshops.
"The videos were created with volunteers and staff and reflected these conversations. It was made on a low budget and promoted online via our social media channels.
"The video was launched exclusively on social media in mid-September, but we have removed it from our social media channels due to the negative attention it has attracted in the last 24 hours.
"We do not want that negativity to impinge on and distract from the vital work that we as a centre do in supporting victims and survivors and improving awareness of these important issues across society."
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