MAKE IT LEGAL
The legalisation of same-sex marriage is back on the agenda with Ireland and the US jumping on board. Why aren’t we?
SAME-SEX marriage. You can do it in New Zealand. You can do it in Ireland. You can do it in Canada. You can do it in Belgium. In fact, you can now do it in more than 20 countries. Indulge me. They include Finland, Norway, Netherlands, Spain, South Africa, Sweden, Portugal, Iceland, Argentina, Denmark, France, Brazil, Britain, Luxembourg, Uruguay.
You still can’t do it in Australia. Sad, but true.
It has been a topic high on the agenda during the past week, thanks to the recent landmark change in legislation in the US in which it became the 21st country to legalise same-sex marriage nationwide.
The enlightened decision sparked a flurry of support from people around the world, whether they were gay, straight, sideways, up or down.
People on Facebook changed their profile pictures so they were adorned in all the colours of the rainbow in recognition of the move.
So, congratulations to the US and it’s about time too.
It’s also about time for Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Australia to do the same – to get enlightened, harden up and put an end to the appalling discrimination and homophobia that is alive and well in this country. Love is love is love. As a bisexual woman living in a same-sex relationship, I can speak first-hand about the discrimination and homophobia that I have experienced and witnessed here.
I must admit prior to being in a relationship with another woman, I had no clue just how detrimental and rife homophobia still is in our country.
Admittedly, the discrimination I have experienced has been specifically fuelled by the religious beliefs of ignorant citizens who quite frankly need to get a grip on the fact we are living in the 21st century.
But hey, I’ll leave the religious debate for another day.
The fact of the matter is, it’s getting embarrassing to live in a country that doesn’t give everyone the right to love.
My story, just like millions of other Australians, is simple – I fell in love with a woman, just like my brother fell in love with a woman.
And I, like every heterosexual citizen, should have the basic human right to marry the person who I love.
So there we have it, another rant and rave about marriage equality.
To be honest, I’m sick of talking about it.
I just want to get on with my life properly and know that we are all treated as equals.
Thanks to the US, I am hopeful this will be the case in Australia sooner rather than later.