Fighting for Equality

Fighting for Equality

The NSW Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby has been busy fighting for equality and social justice for lesbians, gay men and their families and we thought it timely to remind the community of our current campaigns.
The GLRL is running campaigns for adoption equality and surrogacy reform in NSW. These campaigns will deliver substantial practical benefits to lesbians and gay men and their families.
The GLRL, in support of full marriage equality, is also developing a campaign for civil marriage. The GLRL has adopted this term for our marriage equality campaign because we feel it to be a more inclusive term that truly reflects the recommended amendments to the Marriage Act put forward in the Greens’ Marriage Equality Amendment Bill 2009, allowing for a marriage between two persons not just a man and a woman. Marriage is also a civil institution governed by secular laws which apply to everyone.
The GLRL made a submission to the Senate Marriage Inquiry, which included personal submissions from the community. More than 600 community members also made submissions through the GLRL website. The GLRL will respond to any further enquiries from the Senate Inquiry.
The GLRL also notes the release of the National Human Rights Consultation Committee report which is the result of one of the largest inquiries ever undertaken in Australia. The GLRL welcomes the committee’s recommendation to audit and amend federal legislation, policies and practices to ensure their compliance with Australia’s international human rights obligations. The GLRL will be using this recommendation to lobby for stronger federal anti-discrimination provisions for lesbians and gay men.
The GLRL, thanks to a grant from the City of Sydney, is also running an education campaign with the aim to increase public awareness of the 2008 federal reforms and how they impact on the lives of same-sex individuals, couples and families. Information sessions will be held in November on social security, tax and superannuation, parenting, and de facto status.
The GLRL is NSW’s peak lobbying body and has a proud history of fighting for full equality and social justice on behalf of the gay and lesbian community. Some achievements of the GLRL include the establishment of the Anti-Violence Project; introduction of homosexual anti-vilification legislation; property, hospital, next of kin, inheritance and relationship rights for same-sex couples; and the equal age of consent. Recent achievements include the federal same-sex law reform package and parental status for lesbian co-mothers in NSW.
The GLRL strongly believes all lobby groups should work collaboratively in the fight for social justice and legal equality for lesbians, gay men and their families. While each organisation may employ different strategies and have different priorities, in the end we owe it to the community to work together where possible to ensure our common goal of full equality is achieved.
To view GLRL submissions visit www.glrl.org.au

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3 responses to “Fighting for Equality”

  1. Actually (in the middle of doing some research) the ACT was the first in Australia to recognise same sex couples with the DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIP ACT 1994 – Not NSW. South Australia was the second last until new laws became effective on 1 June 2007 and the Commonwealth was the lucky last to recognise same sex couples until new laws became effective on 1 July 2009.

    In 2005 the first piece of Commonwelath legislation to recognise same sex couples was you guessed it – the ANTI-TERRORISM ACT 2005 (under the definition of family member). what a complete insult to us gays!!!!!

  2. Regardless of your opinion on relationship registers, NSW was actually the first state in Australia to comprehensively recognise same-sex couples as de facto partners in property division, inheritance, medical decision-making upon incapacity etc. in 1999. (Same-sex de factos were recognised in a piecemeal fashion in a few select ares – such as victims compensation – before this, from the early 90s, I believe).

    Therefore, I don’t think it is accurate to say “NSW is always slow on relationship recogntion”. Admittedly though, NSW has been slow on the last vestiges of relationship discrimination, namely adoption and parenting reforms.

  3. What about a “Relationship Bill” [the Tasmanian model] for NSW since Tasmania and Victoria have one already and hundreds of couples (regardless of gender) are now in legally recognised registered relationships – Why is NSW always slow on relationship recognition??????