The Obamas Have Been Awarded The Freedom Of Dublin

The Lord Mayor awarded Barack Obama the Freedom of the City at a Dublin City Council meeting last night – and not everyone was pleased about it.

Lord Mayor Brendan Carr put the decision to a vote which divided the council, with 30 voting in favour and 23 voting against.

The decision resulted in councillors John Lyons, Andrew Keegan, Tina MacVeigh and Hazel de Nortuin walking out of the meeting, feeling it was insult to award a leader who was involved in deportation and the use of drone strikes, according to Irishtimes.com.

The Lord Mayor explained his decision to award Dublin's highest honour to the former President and First Lady,

"I am not proposing that we canonise the Obamas, or declare Barack Obama’s presidency a success. But I do believe that Dublin City Council should seek to recognise their achievements and their vision for a better, fairer world.”

An official invitation has yet to be issued and it's unclear whether the Obamas will accept the award in person.

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