Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Families and Payments) Share this | Hansard source

Today is a great day for Australia. Today we say yes to equality. We say yes to love. Soon we'll have the all-too-rare privilege of casting a vote to extend the great Australian ideal of fairness and equality to every gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex person. We'll get the chance to make this country a better place. Every single Australian deserves to be treated equally under the law no matter who they are or who they love.

Above all things Australians value fairness and equality, but for too long the institution of marriage has been one that excludes one group of Australians, and in so doing we have sent a powerful message not just about marriage but about equality, discrimination and exclusion. It's the wrong message and it's hurt a lot of people. Today we right that wrong. Today we send a new message: one of hope, inclusion and love. Everyone deserves the right to be married if that is what they want. Everyone deserves to be able to choose the way in which they want to live their life and to choose how they want to celebrate and develop their relationships. That's why I'll be once again voting yes for marriage equality.

My partner, Ross, and I have been together for nearly 40 years. We have three children and now a granddaughter. We don't want or need anyone to sanctify our relationship. It is strong and loyal and loving. But the difference is we've been able to choose to build our family according to our principles, and LGBTIQ people should be able to do the same. I do not want a church or the state involved in my personal relationship. I adore my father and love my partner, but the idea that I would be given like a piece of property from one man to another is totally antithetical to me. The patriarchal views of many religions do not align with my ethical beliefs that men and women should be equal, and the same is true, from my ethical standpoint, about LGBTIQ people. They too should have the right to live with and love who they choose and marry if they want to.

In 2015 I received an email from a constituent of mine, Tiffany Talberg. Tiffany wrote: 'As a gay woman, this issue is very close to my heart. I may or may not want to marry a partner in the future, but that doesn't mean I should be denied the option of marrying the one I love.' Tiffany is right. She should have the freedom to marry the person she loves, and, with the passage of this legislation, she will soon have that freedom.

The truth is that many Australians were ahead of the parliament on this issue. It is a reform that is long overdue. In my own electorate of Jagajaga, 73.5 per cent of people voted in favour of marriage equality. I do want to congratulate everyone who was involved in the 'yes' campaign. I especially want to give a shout-out to those from Trades Hall in Victoria who campaigned tirelessly for equality. In particular, I want to thank Will Strack, who ran the field campaign.

I do want to especially acknowledge and pay tribute to all the rainbow families who I know have had a difficult time with this public debate about their private lives. Let me be very clear: the postal survey was unnecessary. It caused needless pain for LGBTIQ Australians. We didn't need this process to decide to end discrimination against gay and lesbian people and whether or not they should be able to marry who they choose. We never needed a process whereby strangers got a say in determining whether some relationship between two people was more equal than others. For many LGBTIQ Australians who struggled with their identity early in their lives, the postal survey took them back to a place of insecurity—a place where they were told they needed to seek acceptance from the rest of the community to be who they are.

I especially want to acknowledge and congratulate so many LGBTIQ Australians who've campaigned for this day for so many years—and it has been a very long time. In 1949, the death penalty was still on the books for sodomy in Victoria. It took until 1980 for the Hamer government to decriminalise homosexuality in Victoria, and in Tasmania male homosexuality wasn't decriminalised until 1997, so we have come a long way. One of the positive things about this debate is that it has energised and engaged young people. They are a new generation that's becoming politicised because the issue of marriage equality touches them at such an emotional level. Young Australians just cannot abide discrimination against LGBTIQ Australians.

I want to especially pay tribute to my good friend and colleague Penny Wong. Her leadership has been so strong and so constant. We are incredibly lucky to have her. I especially want to acknowledge Sophie, Alexandra and Hannah. Our thanks and love go to the three of you. Another great Labor senator, Louise Pratt, has been such a tower of strength during this debate, and I know how much this means to her and her wonderful family, especially Jasper.

I want to briefly talk about a school in my electorate: Eltham High School. Eltham High was one of the 10 founding schools to support the Safe Schools Coalition program, which aims to create a safe and supportive school environment for same-sex attracted, intersex and gender diverse people. I remember a speech that the principal, Vincent Sicari, gave to the students after the murder of more than 50 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando in the United States in 2016. He told his students, 'I cannot expect you to value diversity and individuality and have social responsibility if I remain silent when things like this occur.' For the remainder of the week, the rainbow flag flew at half-mast at the front of the school as a sign of respect and solidarity. I want to congratulate Eltham High for its leadership on inclusion in our education system.

I also briefly want to talk about religious freedom. These matters have been raised a lot in this debate. Some of the amendments that have been proposed to this bill by conservative members are seeking to extend exemptions from the Sex Discrimination Act and various state antidiscrimination laws. I want to say loud and clear today that I do not support any of these amendments. Our antidiscrimination laws are important. There are, rightly, limits to religious freedom. Discrimination on the basis of sex, race, sexual preference or anything else is unacceptable in a modern society like Australia. Do we really want to go back to a place where someone can be refused service—where you can refuse to bake them a cake or drive them in your car—because they're gay? The Australian people do not want that, and I certainly will not support it. We all know that no religious minister under this bill need marry a gay couple against his or her conscience. Churches are able to determine who they marry and who they don't and will continue to do so. These amendments that some conservatives want to move aren't about protecting religious freedom; they are, in fact, an underhanded attempt to water down our antidiscrimination laws, and I certainly won't be supporting any such amendments.

I now want to speak, in closing, directly to LGBTIQ Australians. You are no less than other people because of who you are. Your love is no less because of who you love. This bill is a significant step towards equality. This bill is a significant step towards eliminating discrimination against LGBTIQ Australians. But there are still more steps we must take. The freedom to marry will soon be legislated, but there are still far too many workplaces where LGBTIQ Australians suffer from discrimination. Too many young gay people are bullied at school and bullied on sporting fields simply because of who they are, the way they talk or the way they look. The task for us all is to eliminate discrimination. The task for us all is to foster greater inclusion of LGBTIQ Australians.

I want to close by sharing a very personal story. Earlier this year I became a grandmother for the first time, and my granddaughter's name is Camille. She of course has been a peaceful eruption of joy and love in our world. And this, like most big moments in your life, causes you to reflect—to reflect on the kind of place you want to leave behind for future generations. With the passage of this bill, young Australians growing up today will have the freedom to choose to marry the person that they love. It's a future that has been a long time coming, but, in the end, love and the campaign for equality will win.

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