SA Greens Announce Plan to Advance the Rights of LGBTIQ+ People

The South Australian Greens have today announced their plan to advance the rights of LGBTQIA+ people across the state.

Greens MLC Robert Simms, one of only two out gay men in State Parliament, announced the party’s plan for LGBTIQ+ people on Friday afternoon, before Feast Festival’s Picnic in the Park tomorrow.

“LGBTIQ+ South Australians are a vital part of our state’s community,” he said. “We deserve to have our rights protected. The Greens will continue to stand up for the rights of LGBTI South Australians and fight discrimination in all its forms.”

Their plan includes establishing a Human Right Act for South Australia, legislating to remove religious exemptions to anti-discrimination laws in education, health and public services, and implementing policies to combat homophobia and transphobia in schools and support LGBTIQ+ health and wellbeing.

The party will also push for new laws that ensure that same-sex parents have their status appropriately recognised on their child’s birth certificate.

The move comes as the NSW Greens continue their campaign to establish a Human Rights Act for the state, with peak legal bodies coming together to call on the government to introduce the change.

Nation-leading legislation

South Australia marked the 50th anniversary of the state’s landmark decriminalisation of homosexuality only last month, becoming the first state in the country to do so, with parliamentarians across party lines re-enacting the speeches first delivered in 1975.

“Our state has achieved so much in the 50 years since we made history and led the country in decriminalising homosexuality in 1975 but there’s still lots of work to do,” said Simms.

The Greens also propose making PrEP free to further the goal of eliminating HIV in South Australia and expanding access to sexual health clinics across the state and ensuring that they are appropriately resourced, and will also push to ensure gender affirming healthcare is accessible for all gender diverse South Australians.

Last year, SA banned conversion practices, following in the footsteps of  Victoria, the ACT, and New South Wales, with perpetrators facing up to five years in prison, and fines of up to $15,000.

“The legislation is not perfect, but it’s an important step forward, and it will protect thousands of vulnerable South Australians into the future,” said Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown at the time.