Civil marriage equality

The deadline is fast approaching to make a submission for the Senate Inquiry into the Marriage Equality Amendment Bill 2009 (Cth).

The NSW Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby urges anyone who hasn’t already made a submission supporting marriage equality to do so before the August 28 deadline to ensure our community’s voices are heard.

At the recent Australian Labor Party national conference, the ALP disappointingly decided to maintain the current discriminatory definition of marriage, which explicitly excludes same-sex couples from being able to marry before the law.

There were some positive changes made to the ALP’s policy platform that concerned the GLBT community, however, the ALP’s current policy still falls short of full equality.

The Government has already ushered in a new era of equality, as same-sex couples have all the rights and responsibilities as of July 1 this year of married couples -” but not the right to marry.

Prime Minster Kevin Rudd states the ALP is a party for the future built on the principles of fairness and inclusion, however, the decision to continue marriage discrimination shows this fairness and inclusion does not extend to same-sex couples.

Take a stand for civil marriage equality and make a submission to the Inquiry before of August 28.

To assist community members make a submission, the GLRL has developed a simple to use online form on our website (www.glrl.org.au) that can be completed and will send your submission automatically through to the Inquiry Committee.

Approximately 500 submissions have already been made through the GLRL website.

We have been delighted at the detail and quality of many of the submissions but we know it’s important the Inquiry hears from many more people who support civil marriage equality.

Take action today to ensure your voice is heard.