Sharpe speaks out on families

NSW’s first openly lesbian parliamentarian has used her maiden speech to celebrate gay and lesbian parents and their children.To the children and young people who are growing up in lesbian and gay families: Your parents have thought very hard and overcome many challenges to bring you into the world, upper house MP Penny Sharpe told parliament last night.You are fortunate to live in families that understand the values of love, diversity, and acceptance. The mother-of-two told parliament she had grown up in a so-called -˜typical’, -˜traditional’ family. By that I meant kids, a mum and a dad, all related by blood.But she said she now realised families were formed by blood or by choice, by love or by circumstance -¦ there are two-parent, one-parent, gay-parent and foster-parent families.Sharpe, who took the upper house seat after Carmel Tebbutt won the Marrickville by-election in September, pledged to work towards community tolerance during her time in Macquarie Street.