Page 848 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 9 March 2016
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The service offers counselling and support to distressed LGBTIQ teens and has stated categorically that they are seeing the direct impact of the awful statements made by people like federal member George Christensen and Senator Cory Bernardi. This has been particularly obvious in the past couple of weeks, with Drummond Street Services noting a noticeable rise in the number of calls being made to their counselling service.
I am further disheartened by the fact that the extreme right-wing faction of the federal coalition has been able to force a review into the program, with the clear intent to have its funding discontinued. It is disappointing that the federal education minister and, indeed, the Prime Minister himself have felt the need to give in to these demands. I urge the federal government to put an end to this farcical behaviour and renew its support for the program, as we in this place are doing today. Today, the ACT government is once again showing its commitment to social justice and the progression of LGBTIQ rights.
To continue on a lighter note, Madam Speaker, it is really great to know that the safe schools program exists and that it is making life better and brighter for LGBTI students. We have come a very long way from when I was at school. When I was young, these sorts of issues were not able to be discussed. Anything to do with LGBTI issues was rarely discussed in society in general, and if they were it was done in an extremely negative way. Harsh ridicule and derogatory comments were used aplenty and segregation was common.
Nowadays, LGBTI people can be a vibrant part of Australian society. I have colleagues and friends who are part of this community and they are accepted, successful, happy people. This societal transition has happened quite quickly, in terms of how slowly society can make positive change, with South Australia, under the Dunstan Labor government, being the first jurisdiction to decriminalise homosexual relationships in 1972 and the ACT being the first to pass a marriage equality bill in 2013.
I would like to note that it has been Labor governments that have enacted the legislative changes to improve the lives of LGBTI people across Australia. The ALP has always been a party which promotes social justice, equity and civil rights and it will continue to do so. While the federal Liberal Party tries to remove a program which helps LGBTI students in school, deliberately outlawed marriage equality in 2004 and are deliberately planning to spend $140 million to stall a free vote on marriage equality, the ALP is pushing forward.
As recently as December of last year, the Queensland government reinstated that state’s civil union laws after they were repealed by the LNP government under Campbell Newman in 2012 in a totally regressive piece of legislation. As we move forward, I have no doubt that this will continue to be the trend. The Labor government in Victoria will soon be enacting same-sex adoption laws under the premier Daniel Andrews and progress will continue under Labor governments around the nation.
As I have said in previous debates on LGBTI issues in this place, not only do programs like the safe schools program and legislation for marriage equality and
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