All posts tagged: same sex marriage

VIDEO: Rallying for Marriage Equality in Australia Continues

Published by thequeerav

On Saturday October 15, Perth hosted one of the first marriage equality rallies in Australia since it was officially confirmed the Labor Party will block  the plebiscite once it reaches the senate. Equal Love’s Sam Cavallaro, Greens member Lynn MacLaren, activist Caleb Holmes, activist Jacqueline Blackburn and Clare Francis from the National Union of Students all spoke at the rally, demanding the government hold a free vote in parliament. Despite the lack of support for a plebiscite from Labor and Greens politicians as well as the vast majority of the Australian population, various politicians are still determined for it to go ahead. Special Minister of State Scott Ryan has dismissed calls for a free vote in parliament while Nationals MP Andrew Broad has stated he will walk away from the government should the prime minister change his current approach to marriage equality. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has yet to state what his next move will be once the plebiscite is blocked; he supports marriage equality, though the plebiscite was a major component of the coalition …

Review – The Queen of Ireland

Published by thequeerav

The Queen of Ireland is a documentary film about the life of Rory O’Neill, better known as Irish drag queen Panti Bliss. The film looks at everything from O’Neill’s life growing up gay in the small town of Ballinrobe, County Mayo, to living with HIV and his gay rights activism, particularly in the lead up to the historic marriage equality referendum in Ireland in 2015. The film is beautifully directed by Conor Horgan who, until this point, was most well known for directing the 2009 post-apocalyptic Irish drama One Hundred Mornings, the winner of many awards. After watching The Queen of Ireland though, I can’t help but feel he has reached new levels of artistic achievement, and that this film will go down as a classic in queer cinema. You see, he didn’t just lay out the facts of a story already written, he captured the honest, intelligent and quirky character that is Rory O’Neill/Panti Bliss. He showed us why Panti is a hero and an inspiration for LGBTI activists everywhere, even when, in fact …

Rally for Marriage Equality in Perth, June 2016

Published by thequeerav

Hundreds of Perth people gathered for one final rally for LGBTI rights on June 25 before the upcoming election on July 2. The Rally for Marriage Equality, hosted by Equal Love WA, was one of many happening across Australia on Saturday. The crowd and speakers were particularly angry over the proposed plebiscite from the Liberals which would cost tax payers $160 million despite current public support for marriage equality. With the election less than a week away, opposition leader Bill Shorten has committed to making marriage equality his first act as Prime Minister should Labor win. “The first piece of legislation I introduce into the 45th Parliament will be a bill to amend the marriage act, a simple change,” he said. The words “a man and a woman” are replaced with “two people”, no $160 million plebiscite, no hurtful, hateful government-sponsored advertising campaign for us.” Should this be the case, this will not only be a win for same gender couples, but also trans, non-binary and intersex people. The Greens support for marriage equality hasn’t …

Gay Marriage Vs. Marriage Equality: Not the same thing

Published by thequeerav

As the world comes closer to reaching marriage equality (baby steps people), I thought it might be an appropriate time to point out what the term ‘marriage equality’ ACTUALLY means. Too often I see the terms same sex marriage, gay marriage and marriage equality used interchangeably and I have to point out that it is incorrect to do so. I know this issue has been written about a lot in the past but it’s still something that happens frequently, so I thought it might be time to revisit. Some people might think this is me being too picky and/or too concerned  with being politically and linguistically correct though I would have to disagree. If there’s anything I’ve learnt from being a part of the queer community, it’s that language IS VERY IMPORTANT and something that can’t just be ignored or generalised by the wider community for the sake of ease. Same sex marriage and gay marriage are terms frequently used by the wider community to refer to a marriage between two people of the same sex; 2 …

Gillard Says Gay Marriage is Inevitable

Published by thequeerav

Three same-sex couples dined with Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard at the Lodge last night to talk about same-sex marriage.  Gillard spoke of the increasing pressure on politicians to legalize same-sex marriage world wide. Sandy Miller and Louise Bucke brought their sons Matthew Miller, 12, and Dylan Miller, 9, to the dinner, who  expressed their concern as to why their mothers and other same-sex couples can’t get married. “I don’t know really why I am here,” Matthew said. “To me, it is simple and this argument should have been settled long ago. People should be allowed to marry the person they love and to be accepted by all society.” Dylan had previously written to the Prime Minister on the issue but was glad to be able to express his feelings in person. “I just want her to have a think how much it would hurt her if she couldn’t marry the person she loves most in the whole world,” he said Ms Miller added that although Gillard is still against same-sex marriage, the meeting itself was a positive …

Equal Marriage Rights in Washington: Senate Approves Bill

Published by thequeerav

The Washington State Senate Passed a bill on Wednesday that will legalize same sex marriage. Gov. Chris Gregoire supports the measure and has agreed to sign it into law when it gets to the House. Applause broke out in the public galleries when the Senate passed the measure, a 28-21 vote. Democratic Sen. Ed Murray, a gay lawmaker from Seattle, and the bill’s sponsor believes those who vote against gay marriage should not be accused of bigotry nor should those who vote for it be accused of “undermining family life or religious freedom.” “Marriage is how society says you are a family” he said. Sen. Dan Swecker, R-Rochester argued against same sex marriage saying it will change the definition of marriage and “will lead to the silencing of those who believe in traditional marriage.” A referendum clause has been rejected, meaning opponents will have to wait to file a challenge once the law is passed. If opponents aren’t able to gather enough signatures, same sex couples will be able to get married starting June. For further information click here.