A Year of Action for Gay Marriage in Australia

by Michael Jones · 2009-09-29 04:56:00 UTC
Topics:

Australia marriage

How do you follow up a successful day of action in support of gay marriage? If you're activists in Australia, you turn that whole day of action into a whole year of action.

Marriage equality advocates in Australia are preparing to launch a new campaign, "A Year of Action for Same-Sex Marriage," on November 28, following up on a day of action in support of marriage earlier this summer that saw the largest marriage equality rallies in Australia's history.

That November 28 date is two days after a marriage equality bill is to be tabled in the Australian Senate. The bill, which would legalize same-sex marriage in Australia, has reportedly received more submissions of any Senate inquiry than any other bill in the history of Australia. The number of submissions favoring marriage equality alone stands at over 10,000.

That's huge, and it mirrors public opinion. Recent polls suggest that more than 60 percent of Australians support same-sex marriage. With numbers like those, Australia is more gay marriage-friendly than even Massachusetts.  Ben Cooper, a co-convenor of Community Action Against Homophobia in Sydney, told Green Left that 2010 will mark a year in which LGBT people in Australia take to the streets to demand full, equal rights.

"The days of growing up invisible, and being treated as second-class citizens, has to end. For too long we have been treated as if our deepest feelings are second-rate and abnormal," Cooper said. "For too long we have been bullied, bashed, censored, raped and rejected. For too long we have been marginalized, vilified and silenced."

That silence is ending on November 28. Prepare for a loud 2010 when it comes to campaigning for equal rights in Australia.

(Photo courtesy of David Jackmanson's photostream on Flickr.)

Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor. He has worked in the field of human rights communications for a decade, most recently for Harvard Law School.
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