Pro-life billboards VANDALISED in Co. Offaly

Offaly pro-life activists have lodged a complaint with An Garda Síochána after pro-life billboards were vandalised and defaced last week in Boora village.

During the week of the National Ploughing Championships, Life Institute and Offaly Pro-life collaborated for a billboard and poster campaign, local activists said. 

“We had two billboards, displayed in Boora village, which depicted two distinct messages,” Offaly Pro-Life said. 

“One said: “Life isn’t just precious - it’s stunning! A future for every child” - while another stated: “Almost 11,000 abortions a year - we are aborting our future”,” the local pro-life group explained. 

However, about 48 hours after being erected, the billboards were badly vandalised - with paint splashed on the message, while the words “my body, my choice” were written in paint. 

“We are shocked and saddened by the damage. It is an attack on free speech in addition to complete intolerance for the right of pro-life activists to present the facts in the public square,” Offaly Pro-Life said. 

“These are the undeniable facts: In Ireland, 1 in 6 pregnancies end in abortion. The annual abortion rate has increased every year since the 8th amendment was repealed in 2018.”

“The latest data released from the HSE in June of this year show that 10,600 abortions took place in 2025. That means that in September 2026, it’s likely that the total number of abortions since the 8th was repealed is well over 65,000,” the pro-life group added. 

“For context, this is one abortion for every single student who sat their Leaving Cert this year,” they said. 

“Abortion advocates, such as the vandals who defaced the property of Offaly Pro-life, know that these figures speak volumes. Abortion, when uncovered and cast into the cold light of day, protests itself,” the pro-life group added. 

“This is now a matter of Garda investigation - and we will be replacing the vandalised billboards this week,” they added. “We will not allow intolerance or thuggery to silence our message.” 

“Not the win they think it is”

Commenting on the matter, Life Institute’s Megan Scallan has said that the vandalisation of the pro-life billboards has only further encouraged the team in their efforts, and it’s “not the win” that the vandals think it is. She said:

“The efforts to hide the reality of abortion in Ireland and the damage it’s doing to our country, going so far as to vandalise a couple of pro-life posters, shows us two things: 

1. We’re reaching people and the message is working 

2. Abortion advocates in this country are feeling insecure 

So don’t worry, we’ll keep going — with bigger and bolder billboards. Thanks for the encouragement! And thanks for showing the country just how intolerant you are.”