Page 2936 - Week 08 - Thursday, 17 August 2017
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campaign for something in which he claims to believe. Just as he has done on climate change, he has walked away from his own values and, I suspect, the values of his electorate for political reasons.
As others have said, the fight for marriage rights for LGBTIQ people is a fight for equality, plain and simple, because, while love does not discriminate, the law currently does. The benefits of legal recognition through marriage are substantial. Findings from other jurisdictions have demonstrated that feelings of social inclusion are enhanced among LGBTIQ people when marriage equality is legalised.
However, it is clear that there may be a real cost to LGBTIQ people in the fight to achieve this in Australia. The postal survey process proposed by the federal Liberal government presents a real risk to the wellbeing of LGBTIQ people, particularly young people. We know that LGBTIQ people are already more likely to experience depression and anxiety than the broader population. They are also at greater risk of suicide and self-harm. Among LGBTIQ populations, research clearly shows us that discrimination, abuse, exclusion and prejudice are key contributors to the increased rates of depression, anxiety and self-harm. What we have already seen shows us that prejudice and discrimination will be cornerstones of the campaign against marriage equality.
Let us be frank: there is nothing respectful about the arguments against marriage equality. It is hard to be respectful at the same time that you are disrespecting another person’s right to equality. There is nothing respectful about suggesting that the love between two people is less important or less special than the love between another couple simply by virtue of the gender of the people in the couple.
The sense of hurt and discrimination experienced during this campaign will be profound—again, especially for young LGBTIQ people. So I say to all LGBTIQ Canberrans: we are sorry you have to go through this. To all LGBTIQ young people, I say: we are with you and we are proud of you. I commend the Chief Minister’s motion.
MR PETTERSSON (Yerrabi) (3.54): It is a privilege to speak today on the Chief Minister’s motion, unamended. I would like to acknowledge the Chief Minister’s longstanding advocacy on this issue. Today, we are sending a message to LGBTIQ Canberrans that we have their back. But we are doing more than just sending a message; today we are taking action. We believe that every Canberran, regardless of their sexuality, has the right to marry the person they love. With this motion the ACT government will campaign for a yes in the marriage equality campaign.
I acknowledge that we are in a bizarre position. The ABS is conducting not a plebiscite but a non-binding postal survey, a survey that will cost $122 million: money that could be well spent elsewhere. Countless MPs have already confirmed that the result of the survey will not even change their mind. This is frankly ridiculous. But here we are; the campaign for marriage equality must not falter when conservatives throw up these challenges. As a great civil rights campaigner once
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