Marriage Bill debate begins today
The Greens and Parents and Friends of Lesbians And Gays (PFLAG) have spoken out prior to debate in the Senate on the Marriage Equality (Amendment) Bill.
Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said she hoped the major parties would allow a conscience vote following the debate, as it would show the true extent of support for marriage equality in Parliament.
“If we take our understanding that the Australian people are growing in their support for removing this type of discrimination, and we believe that our Parliament is representative of the Australian community, we would have to draw the conclusion that many people within our chamber want to see that discrimination removed, and would like to see same-sex couples marry, just as heterosexual couples,” Hanson-Young said.
“Until now … the members of both major parties have been told to toe the party line. And despite the murmurings on the backbench, and behind the party room doors, we haven’t been able to see people speak freely.
“Having a conscience vote would allow those members of both the Labor Party and the Liberal Party the freedom to finally speak and talk about how they feel on this issue.”
National PFLAG spokeswoman Shelley Argent drew on her experiences as a parent in support of the bill.
“I have two sons, and I definitely see my gay son as equal to his straight brother, and I think giving them both the choice of marriage is a very important step towards equality and giving him the choices and rights that he deserves and every other gay and lesbian in this country,” Argent said.
“I am so thankful to be down here [Canberra] today to be supporting Sarah and the Greens with this proposed legislation, and as a parent of a gay male I just think it is amazing that we can probably now start to think about equality and the terms of marriage.”
Greens leader Senator Bob Brown said he had hit a wall of silence in trying to communicate with the Government on the issue.
“I’ve tried really hard to get the Government to ensure that we get a second reading vote, but I’ve got no response out of them,” Brown said.
“I am very fearful that the Government will simply filibuster so that they don’t allow parliamentarians to have a vote on this. It’s really important that they do. It is a deprivation of rights that gay and lesbian couples can’t marry.
“Public opinion polls show that Australians want this to be fixed. It’s been fixed in many countries including Catholic Spain, and many other European countries, Canada, South Africa, and it should be fixed here.”
Another thing Helen how could you see some hetrosexual sex acts that would make you throw up.??? I have never seen anything of the kind . You seem to recognize a form of perversion? You seem to have seen all kinds of crap which I would never take part in . Yes if you are looking and seeking that sort of thing, you are partaking in what you allow to pass through your eyes and take root in your brain.
If you watch enough of what you described you will become tainted, perverted, changed in yourself in some way, the process begins. If I am eating a lot of junk Helen I will become unhealthy, you wont see the inside changes but we do see all the overweight people on the outside…its from eating junk, and too much of it. I think you get the picture.
Mother Helen…you dont seem to get it …People are capable of doing the worst to each other sex or no sex. I am not talking about sex I am talking about a lifestyle which you call normal.Its totally against nature to suggest a relationship condusive to marriage between two same genders, period. I may want to include a couple of women in my marriage just becasue I want to have a relationship with another woman. I can make myself believe that I have a right to have this relationship, I can want it so bad that I wont accept any opposition to it. If you try I will conjole, rant , squirm and rave until I get my way..but it doesnt make it right. I sure want it to be right, and no matter how hard I try or how much I believe it to be right , it will never be right.
Whats your blessings from hell about ? You sound like your a religaphobic.
Gary, oh Gary, perverted? I’ve seen some heterosexual sexual acts that have almost made me throw up. Forget about the homo & hetero sexual bit. What about homo & hetero love? Are you saying there are different degrees of love?
Blesssings from Hell xoxoxo
Forgot this part… Meanwhile newspapers are trying to hunt down pedophiles, and people who target young people on the internet…what a joke. The homosexual movement has manourvered their way into teaching sexually explicit homo stuff to our youngest children in school at the blessings of government, and under the noses of parliament and the so called courts? What lunacy is this, Introducing sexual acts, scenes, to young minds is like introducing them to cocaine, it will eventually consume them, and turn them into somehting you wont like as parents, believe me.
I dont care how many parents and friends of gays want to change the law on marriage…Dont DO IT. My neice is gay , so what, its still unacceptable, and perverted. Because my friend has cancer , is it ok to introduce cancer to the rest of parliament and society so we can all spread our cancer to everyone.??? What idiocy. Homosexual acts are perverted, unhealthy, and loose. They go from one partner to the next. Monogomy is almost unheard of in a homo relationship, and this is what your trying to hold on a pedestal next to marriage. Good luck to your decending society, and the new onslaught of trouble ahead.
VOTE 1 Greens on November 2010!!!!!
I’d like to know which party the majority “no” voters belong to.
For those who don’t understand why the MPs who were in support of this bill were absent, its because they can only vote within their party line. Which as we all know, the leaders of both the major parties are against marriage equality.
The greens, ofcourse, are in support of marriage equality, which allows its MPs to vote in favour of marriage equality, which is why they weren’t absent.
Go the Greens! They are the only party that supports an end to all discrimination against us! They show us how mean and nasty the Labor Party and the Liberal Party is, and why they should never get our vote.
Catholic Kevin Rudd, Tony Abbott, and Stephen Conroy, can Happy Clap all they want in Church, but we know what type of bastards they are.
This is the list of people who voted against your equality. Only the greens voted for us.
http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;adv=;db=;group=;holdingType=;id=;orderBy=;page=0;query=marriage;querytype=;rec=0;resCount=Default