MP apologises for saying Wong’s child not hers
A South Australian Labor frontbencher has apologised to federal Finance Minister Penny Wong after saying the child she is having with her same-sex partner, is not hers.
Wong and her partner Sophie Allouache are expecting their first child in Dece
mber.
Labor MP Tom Kenyon today made the remarks when discussing his opposition to same-sex marriage because a man and a woman can biologically produce.
“Gay people can’t have kids together,” Kenyon told the ABC.
When an ABC reporter remarked Wong was expecting a baby with her partner later this year Kenyon responded saying, “But she’s a lesbian couple, that’s through IVF.”
“I don’t want to be rude to Penny but it’s not her baby, if you know what I mean, it’s not biologically, it’s not the biological product of two people.”
Kenyon later issued a statement saying he didn’t mean to offend the couple, but said he still opposes same-sex marriage and will be voting against it at Labor’s December national conference.
“I apologise if those comments offended them in any way,” Kenyon said.
“I don’t think it’s discrimination to say to people a man and a woman getting together, having kids, bringing up a family, that’s special, that’s important, that’s marriage.
“In general a gay couple cannot produce children that’s almost absolute, a gay couple cannot produce children and most married couples do.”
Kenyon’s views put him at odds with outgoing Labor Premier Mike Rann, Liberal Opposition Leader Isobel Redmond and incoming Labor Premier Jay Weatherill who have all spoken out in favour of changing the Marriage Act to allow same-sex couples to marry.
Last month incoming Labor MP Gerry Kandelaars used his maiden speech to call for marriage equality and changes to the state’s IVF laws to allow lesbian access.
A same-sex marriage private member’s bill – sponsored by SA Labor MP Ian Hunter and Greens MP Tammy Franks – is currently before the South Australian Parliament.
Rev Dorothy Rae McMahon and Kristina Keneally are women who have defied the current orthodox view and demanded from their Church a rightful place for gays and lesbians, equal with heterosexuals.
They – and other people of faith who support us – deserve support and admiration.
Any gay person that belongs to the Catholic church is a masochist and according to the Churches’ teachings persona non grata!
Sorry ben, you may have had wonderful ‘experiences’ with Catholics but some of us have been abused! Do you know what that is, ben? And ben, keep it up, I never give up and I never give in too societal abuse which I face day to day as a gay human being! Or to people that make excuses for religion! Oh and guess which group of people discriminate against homosexual people the MOST?
Brenton, please find any posting where I supported the Liberals.
Here is another Brenton sneer “Why would anyone of any morality belong to an organisation [the Catholic Church].”
Do you really mean to say that gay Catholics have no morality?
Shock jocks vote and campaign for the Liberals, Fred Nile preferences Liberals, ben loves Liberals, even though they have done nothing for him personally as a homosexual! Food for thought!
Brenton bellows “I will say what I think and believe about Catholics and religion”…exactly what shock jocks say about Moslems and their religion…or Fred Nile says about gays and homosexuality. It’s the words of bigotry.
It’s as much her baby as it would be if she was Peter Wong and the child was conceived through IVF.
ben, ‘the know everything conservative! I will say what I think and believe about Catholics and religion! That is my right and I will continue to fight for getting religion ‘out of everyone’s face’ who doesnt want it! (Which after the results of the next census will be even more Australians!) Why would anyone of any morality belong to an organistaion that has abused more children in history and the list of other crimes against humanity is far TOO long to even contemplate to write! You go right along and cherish the Catholic church! Another ‘win, win’ situation for conservatives and who they reveal their support for!
brenton – Before tarring all Catholics, contrast this offensive bumbler with Kristina Keneally, a Catholic member of the NSW Right who’s leadership pushed through same-sex adoption and most recently spoke out in favour of same-sex marriage, based on her Catholic beliefs!
Tom Kenyon is typical of right-wing Labor Catholics that dominate the Australian Labor Party at all levels and the reason that my partner and I will never, ever vote for the ALP again! We are both Greens voters and so are many of our friends! I want to be able to vote for a party that has secular values not the ALP which is full of conservative religious bigots!
Furthermore, Kenyon is not a scientist. He was using his pre conceived notion of what a parent is to enforce social policy. It’s no longer good enough to say to gay marriage proponents “I’m sorry, but my genitals, and those of my partner, trump your appeal for equality and social justice.” not that it was ever good enough really.
The old saying that it’s better to be thought a fool than open your mouth and remove all doubt might be considered in future by Mr Kenyon.
Actually, Tom Kenyon is wrong to say the child of Penny Wong’s partner is not hers. S.60H of the Family Law Act deems Penny to be a parent of this child, even though it may not have her DNA. Even women who have a child through an IVF procedure, where the child does not have the birth mother’s DNA, are deemed a parent of the child. The reality of what is going on in society is that same sex couples do have children through alternative means, as do opposite sex couples who cannot have children for medical reasons. What a dullard.
Why is everybody getting so het up over someone stating a scientific fact? I have no doubt, Penny Wong might become a wonderful parent, but science is science and and as she is not pregnant, nor male, then scientifically, she is not a parent. Go figure
Lee, I’m adopted and I find this incredibly offensive. I wonder what Mr. Kenyon’s point is. If we are not biologically related to the people that we call family, we are therefore inferior in comparison?
I can’t draw any other conclusion.
I guess if you want a bigot to represent your interest in politics, he’s your man.
That is ridiculous, would you question the credibility of parents who adopt?
I have a very close friend who is adopted, he refers to his parents as the people who raised him. And although he knows and loves his biological parents, it is his ‘mum and dad’ who fed, clothed and supported him, that he rings once a week to make sure they are doing well.
Nurture has such a huge affect on children, and to discount that Penny Wong will have a profound and wonderful affect on her childs life is a failure in understanding the nature of humanity.
Frankly speaking, I feel extremely disappointed with those MPs who go against marriage equality. MPs are all highly-educated people and yet they hold this kind of narrow-minded perception in their life. Well, what’s the issue behind if the child is not a ‘biological product’ of two people? MP Tom said this statement is because he is viewing it from a conservative ‘straight man’ perspective. Are you saying that orphans have no rights to be loved by someone who is not their ‘biological factory’? Is heterosexual relationship is the best in the world because they can produce biological product? What about those who went for abortions because of unprotected sex, dumping of babies and other cases? Why there are so many orphans living in orphanages? Why are there so many child abandonment cases going on daily? These are all ‘biological products’ from the biological factories. Your focus is on sexual and marriage inequality but please don’t drag in those innocence group of people such as children. Please admit on your biases and racist towards same-sex people and stop denying.
Parent isn’t defined as the one who makes the child, but rather the one who extends his/her hands and time for the child’s needs, raising and giving his/her heart to love the child through anything! Biological BLOOD doesn’t always make you a real parent! It comes from the heart. Any FOOL can make a baby easily BUT it takes both parents to raise a child for YEARS!
I think MPs Tom has not only offended Penny but also the whole GLBTI community, adoption parents, orphans and etc. It’s really a shame that you view things in such a rigid way. What the use of apologising if you never thought of what you’ve done and how you’ve hurt the people who heard what you’ve said to the media? If you are not going to change your perception and beliefs, it’s likely that you’ll said this kind of offensive words again in future. In short, your ‘sorry’ is meaningless because you don’t feel guilty about it. You are just doing it for the sake of doing it. It’s meaningless.
You know what? Let me tell you, MP Tom. YOU are not going to understand the hardships and struggles that a homosexual has to go through because you never put yourself on their shoes. You don’t understand how they feel, the repression process, the dilemmas and etc. You are not compatible to be a good people’s representative in the Parliament because a big group of GLBTI community lives in your electoral area as well and you’ve denied their rights opposing same-sex marriage and will be voting against same-sex marriage at Labor’s December national conference. This is another shame on you.
Have a deep thought on my lengthy comments here and I wish Australia would become a country which really respects its nations and be fair to everyone by giving them their deserved rights.
p/s: YOU can choose to DISAGREE with homosexual behaviour BUT it’s a fact that homosexual people really exist in this world. So, please respects them and accept their existence in this world. Every human is a creation based on GOD’s image and GOD NEVER MADE MISTAKES.
I am growing tired of pricks questioning the legitimacy of the lives of people on the basis of their sexuality. We have done many things in our lives, but few could say the tell children your parents love is not natural or real, and you do not have a real family. I mean is trying to get people to bash Penny Wong?
Last time I checked, the idea of a superior race of humans was a Nazi policy. I am just not with this notion birth should be a punishment.
Labor MP Tom Kenyon needs to get the boot from the Labor Party.
Cilly sunt
I’d imagine that adopted people (and their parents) would find that incredibly offensive.