“At least I’m not a homophobe” — Bill Shorten to Cory Bernardi on Safe Schools controversy
OPPOSITION Leader Bill Shorten has referred to far right Liberal Senator Cory Bernardi as a “homophobe” in response to a corridor heckle in Canberra this morning regarding the Safe Schools program.
The South Australian senator had interrupted Shorten’s media doorstop regarding Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s decision to review the Safe Schools program, which is designed to encourage respect and tolerance for LGBTI school students.
Shorten was telling reporters: “We see this ridiculous, absurd obsession by the right wing of the Liberal Party about Safe Schools.”
“At least I’m honest, Bill. You’re a fraud,” Bernardi said as he walked past.
“No, mate. At least I’m not a homophobe either, mate,” Shorten quipped, without turning to acknowledge the senator. [Scroll down to watch full video]
The exchange comes less than 24 hours after the PM caved in to pressure from far right Liberal backbenchers, led by Bernardi, by ordering an inquiry of the Safe Schools program.
Shorten is not the first Labor leader to publicly criticise Bernardi in regards to Safe Schools. Yesterday, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews wrote a Facebook post slamming the federal government’s decision to investigate the Safe Schools program. The post went viral on social media.
The heckle this morning also comes just as the Australian Greens launched an online petition in support of the Safe Schools program.
At present, the Safe Schools program receives $8 million in federal funding, while the controversial School Chaplaincy Program receives $243.8 million in funding.
Watch the video:
OL @billshortenmp brands @corybernardi a “homophobe” in corridor exchange. More on the blog https://t.co/Z0b17shjXR pic.twitter.com/1tsoaSeGmz
— Anna Henderson (@annajhenderson) February 23, 2016
Malcolm Turnbull Call An Election Now!
It is crystal clear which party supports us with marriage equality and a safe schools programs! Please I beg you all only vote for Labor, Greens, Sex or Democrats parties only! Do we really want 3 more years of anti-gay Liberal or LNP dysfunctional mess? Do we really want 3 more years of anti-gay Cory Benardi pulling the strings of Malcolm Turnbull? Opinion polls are 50-50 in the two party prefered categories! Go straight to the Governor-General, dissolve Parliament and call an early election immediately Malcolm Turnbull, if you have balls that is!
Shorten’s stance on gays and lesbians is strong, clear – and personal:
1. Marriage equality legislation in the first 100 days of election
2. Support for safe schools program
3. Marching in Mardi Gras
Shorten has not left any of this up to the Deputy leader or shadow Attorney General. It’s been his voice, his words – and Bernardi had those words coming to him.
HAHAHAHAHAHHAHA you three cock sucking hippy wankas, is there scientific proof yet that being a fag isnt a mental illness? no theres not hey, but there is that animals can be gay too right, think about that fucking losers all liking each other retard comments
Piss off you troll!
There is no homophobia…..just a different opinion. People who disagree with same sex relationships simply disagree, nothing more. Calling it homophobia is a cop out for not having a legitimate reason to have a same sex relationship and so to silence your critics, you use emotive name calling. The whole name calling stunt has worn out and people are not put off by being called homophobia, hate speecher or bigot because name calling is an acknowledgement that you have lost the argument. If equality is what the same sex marriage advocates want, then equality for all types of marriage should be allowed. To limit their marriage re-definition to only include “two consenting adults” is being unequal to the people wanting other forms of marriage – so it is quite a big lie to claim that SSM is “marriage equality”. If you want to save money on a “wasteful” plebiscite, then simply leave the Marriage Act as it is – no cost involved then!…..but the same sex lobby pushing for a change are creating the cost.
Also, the same sex lobby have used the Anti-discrimination Act to try and silence the Roman Catholic Church in Tasmania…..so already this bully tactic has been used. The Australian Christian Lobby are addressing this existing misuse of the Anti-discrimination Act and simply saying that such bully tactics should not be used by anyone (either the “yes” side or the “no” side) to silence people and stop free speech. The way that the media has made out the ACL are wanting favoritism or somehow circumventing the Anti-discrimination Act is further evidence of how devious and deceitful the SSM advocates are. The obvious outcome is that it will backfire and more and more people will be chased over to the “no’ side – that’s what happens when you lie too much for too
long.
There is no hatred, bigotry or discrimination to uphold the millennia-old understanding that marriage is solely between a man and a woman. At worst, it is just a difference of opinion, and at best, it is upholding history for a reason – opposite sex marriages are the only way that civilizations can thrive and be prosperous (you can have children to start with and then to structure ethics, honesty and decency). The family unit is vital to how society functions and when it is distorted or changed, so does society. Already, heterosexual children are told not to use the terms “boy, girl, him, her, mummy, daddy, etc” because these terms are gender specific and oppose the same-sex/transgender identification – so heterosexual people (from a very young age onwards) are impacted in thousands of ways by the same sex marriage re-definition. Plus all heterosexual marriages change from being recognised as “married to a member of the opposite sex for life” to “someone I am temporarily having sex with” which, for me, would be insulting if I was in anyway assumed to be married just for sex or to another man. So every time I say the words “I’m married”, my marriage is being damaged by the re-definition of marriage. My feelings are as valid as any homosexual’s feeling and should be equally considered seriously in the whole same sex marriage debate. Failure to do so shows that the same sex marriage issue is not about love and equality, but solely a political stunt to legalize rampant hedonism and a blatant attack on Christianity. If you want honesty, then there it is.
The Rome Empire that had rampant hedonism and debauchery in the 1st-3rd centuries were not Christian (they killed Christians for sport in the “circuses” where lions would eat Christians) and the Emperor Constantine turned to Christianity as a way out of the horrors going on in the Roman society. So there is a perfect example of how we must also avoid the same horrors of rampant hedonism and debauchery by following the Christian teachings. In other words, we can be “saved from ourselves”. The ACL and Senator Cory Bernardi are highlighting the unfair and dishonest name-calling and dirty political tactics used by the same sex lobby group to silence their critics and shove their agenda down our throats. This will be highlighted a thousand times as the same sex lobby group continue with their dishonest bully tactics and prove the ACL to be true over-and-over-and-over again.
I am loving to homosexuals (the person), just opposed to homosexuality (the act)….plus I am talking about the “same sex lobby group” and not individual homosexuals. I have met many homosexuals who don’t want same sex marriage laws because they don’t want the association with marriage – it is the same sex lobby group that just lies and name calling…..and the “unSafe Schools” propaganda. If you think it is Leviticus that I am following, then try Romans 1:16-32. No one can disagree with the passage because it is being fulfilled before our very eyes (for example: “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools”, “vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened”, “uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts”, “God gave them up unto vile affections”….and verses 28-31 describes most of our politicians perfectly). Amen!
Do not listen to this stupid troll! Why are you on a gay website then?
Bill Shorten has got my vote now! The Labor party has moved a little to the left-of-centre in recent years, while the Liberal party have moved so far to the right – they are off the f****** cliff!
I am voting Labor at the next federal election. I like both Anthony Albanese and Bill Shorten, they are refreshing! I have never ever trusted the Liberal party, especially when John Howard, Phillip Ruddock, Cory Benardi, Bill Hefferman, Eric Abez, Mike Baird, Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and David Clark run the anti-gay show! I for one can not understand in 2016 why we are still debating marriage equality in Australia?!
I can see the Liberal mob are getting pretty nervous about EVERYTHING…. BILL SHORTEN looks amazingly calm and sure of himself. This guy is looking more and more like our next PM. Has the Smiling Assassin lost the next election this week? Keep an eye on the coming Newspoll results…we might find that the Labor Party, the only party with policies, will be ahead of the liberals.