Gay Liberal says marriage not be-all

Gay Liberal says marriage not be-all

Liberal candidate for Melbourne Ports, Kevin Ekendahl says same-sex marriage should not be seen as the holy grail of gay and lesbian rights, but hints he would be unlikely to vote against it.

The “out and proud” Liberal launched his campaign in Caulfield last week and told Southern Star he believes tackling areas such as youth suicide should be a priority over same-sex marriage.

“I think allowing people to marry or not marry isn’t risking people’s lives,” he said.

“The programs available for young people who are same-sex attracted people need to be funded better to help people cope with family problems and ‘coming out’ because lives are at risk there.

“In rural and regional areas, people are still facing very real discrimination and that needs to be addressed.”

Ekendahl, who works in the not-for-profit sector assisting young people to enter training programs and work, said he would also like to see an improvement on issues such as youth homelessness.

Former Opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull launched Ekendahl’s campaign, along with Victorian Liberal senator Judith Troeth and state Liberal candidate for Prahran Clem Newton-Brown.

Up against sitting Labor MP Michael Danby, Ekendahl has a battle ahead to capture the seat, a Labor stronghold for over 100 years.

On the issue of same-sex marriage, Ekendahl said he supports removing “all” discrimination from law, but stopped short of giving a definitive yes or no answer.

“I absolutely support removing any discrimination that exists in any law and you can take that however you want to,” he said.

“Some people in the community want me to say it — that I support gay marriage — and what I support is removing discrimination in any law that exists in Australian Parliament.

“What the Government should be doing is recognising a contract or relationship between two people and if you want to get married you can go to a church, you can go to the Botanic Gardens, you can go to your backyard or you can go to a registry office and do it there if you want to. That’s what I would like to see in Australian law.”

Ekendahl said he would continue to push for gay and lesbian rights within the Liberal Party and would be open about his sexuality throughout his campaign.

“I am who I am, I don’t think people should hide who they are for anyone,” he said.

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