Now the dam is leaking
If last week cracks were beginning to form in the marriage dam, this week leaks are well and truly showing.
It began with a double header on July 14, when the Sydney Morning Herald reported on a push within the Labor Party to change the Government’s policy on same-sex relationships, with a number of proposals to be voted on at the ALP’s national conference. This should lay bare the level of support within the party.
On the same day, an influential conservative came out as a same-sex marriage supporter – former Daily Telegraph editor David Penberthy – now editor at News Ltd’s online opinion hub, The Punch.
At Punch the article was titled, In defence of gay marriages, and ending bad straight ones, while at the Telegraph it ran under the less cuddly A deadlock over unholy wedlock and twined Tony Abbott’s idea of getting rid of no-fault divorce with the gay marriage debate.
Penberthy doesn’t have an honourable record as an ally, so his speaking out may be all the more important. During his time in the editor’s chair at the Telegraph, the paper ran a slew of notorious beat ups on gay issues – for example, 2006’s Gay Care -˜scandal’ (Marrickville Council providing gay inclusive material to childcare centres), and 2008’s claim the gay community was trying to have the words mum and dad banned from schools.
Whatever the reason, Penberthy is now singing a different tune, concluding, there are plenty of gay people who are more together, more balanced and more loving than a lot of heterosexual parents and -¦ a law based on outdated notions can only serve to entrench unhappiness, on both the gay and straight sides of the marital divide, in what is probably one of the most insightful articles by a heterosexual writer on the subject.
Penberthy ran another pro-marriage column two days later by performer Rob Mills – in fact, The Punch is yet to run a single gay critical column.
Conservative commentators like Penberthy coming on side will embolden same-sex marriage supporters in the Coalition – remember all the Liberals who came out as climate change believers once the consensus at the News Ltd camp shifted away from the denialist perspective?
With all this momentum we cant afford to drop the ball – we need every pair of feet on the streets we can muster for the August 1 NDA .
Update: Penberthy’s The Punch has just published a third pro-same-sex marriage article by Tasmanian documentary film maker Davina Storer and has even included a link for people wanting to send submissions to the Government’s same-sex marriage inquiry.
And in nearly three weeks not a single marriage rights opponent has bothered to write an article in response.
I as a gay man will not rest until we have full equality starting with:
* The legal right to marry;
* The legal right to jointly adopt children;
* The legal right to donate blood.
Thanks for your response Andrew, If yourself or others have not previously done so I suggest you view David Penberthy response on ABC’s Media watch program in response to the claim the gay community was trying to have the words -œmum and -œdad banned from schools – link to segment: http://www.abc.net.au/mediawatch/transcripts/s2223389.htm – After viewing the segment Im sure you will understand why Im not convinced that Penberthy is true to his words on his apparent support for gay marriage.
Being told an extremely strong point that i had once disagreed with but now watch for in life and have seen many times, from a very cool and elderly relative…while she was defending herself on donating $30 p/mth to a charity, as i had been advised and argued that possibly only one cent makes it to the actual place of need after the administration costs of this charity are covered, her profound theory was, “As long as good, even be it small, makes it to it’s outcome or destination, we are not to be bothered how, just as long as it get’s there…even if through possible badplay and smaller than you would like, just as long as it GET’S THERE!”…i argued no further.
David Penberthy’s statements reminds me that good change is possible and dare i say inevitable…i am “pleasantly surprised” as a gay person to hear a heterosexual male make such clear, sensible and helpful statements…a handshake to David, at least, if not a hug…a man hug of course, hehehe :)
Hi Jason- It could very well be that some of the subjects of those beat ups got in contact with him and set him straight on a few things.
David Penberthy the man responsible for some of Australia’s most anti-gay beat ups in media is now in support of same-sex marriage ? Im not convinced, something is not quite right there…….