Sen. Penny Wong, Australia’s Labor Party climate change minister, is backing Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s opposition to same-sex marriage. Which is an interesting position for Wong to take, given she’s a lesbian.
The first lesbian cabinet member in Australia’s history, Wong says she backs her party leader’s stance on marriage equality — because that’s the party’s position. She is, quite clearly, a charlatan and a traitor to the LGBT community, more concerned with politics and appearances and towing the line than equal rights. “On the issue of marriage I think the reality is there is a cultural, religious, historical view around that which we have to respect,” she said yesterday. “The party’s position is very clear that this is an institution that is between a man and a woman.”
It’s as if American Rep. Jared Polis went along with the White House’s defense of DOMA simply because he and the president are both Democrats.
But what else would you expect from someone who so easily changes positions when the Labor Party requires it.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
On climate change, there was a time when she said any plan to tackle it without a price on carbon was ”a sham policy”. Now, her party’s policy has no price on carbon. It failed to get the emissions trading scheme through the last parliament, but now has no plan to try again in the next. So sham action on climate change and no action on gay marriage.
In 2006, this same woman said, “I hope there will come a time when this country can look back and wonder why some in this place and some in this government were so frightened of and antagonistic to certain types of relationships. I look to a day, to paraphrase a great man, when we not only judge people by the content of their character but also where we judge their relationships by markers such as respect, commitment, love and security and not by the gender of their partners. I look to a day when government policy and articulation is not so mired in prejudice that it can address these issues fairly. One thing I do know is that that will only come under a Labor government.” (Emphasis ours.)
Green Party leader Sen. Bob Brown, who is gay, says he “was horrified” at Wong’s comments. “To somehow excuse discrimination … on the basis of culture or heritage – are we going to bring back in hanging?”
bluenosedive
Her position is just sad 🙁
But she is quite a looker o_O!!
GayGOP
While I completely understand this horrible position is horrifying to people, I also understand her position.
Parliaments are not like the American Congress. The parties there control, and they enforce party discipline. As a Cabinet Minister, Ms. Wong would either have to resign her leadership, and likely her party, thus losing her effectiveness for her constituents, and her influence with her party leader. She probably thinks she can do more good for the cause inside the party than outside.
Bill
This lesbian does not believe she is entitled to equality.
So, I guess heterosexuals were successful in their programming of her.
the crustybastard
It’s “toeing the line.”
You are metaphorically standing with your toes to the line, not dragging a rope.
Joe Mustich, JP
Jeez, well she surely got some publicity for her comments.
In CT, as a justice of the peace, I perform non-religious civil marriage ceremonies all the time for couples coming to CT to wed from all across America, many of whom have been together for 20, 30, and 40 years.
Marriage licenses are issued by and reocrded in town halls, not church halls,or mosques or temples in America.
Onward to full civil and marriage equality rights in the 21st century.
Joe Mustich, Justice of the Peace,
Washington, Connecticut, USA.
And kudos to CT, a marriag equality state since 2008.
Drake
This lady is totally wong on the subject.
Jon
Jared Polis is not a Senator, he’s a representative.
axos
@GayGOP:
“She probably thinks she can do more good for the cause inside the party than outside.”
I’ve never ever seen that work.
Blake J
She is just a straight women who sleeps with other women.
She does not deserve to be classed under any of the “Queer Community” labels, because she does not respect herself or the rest of us.
She is just a different subset of the bigot population!
Tom B
When was Polis promoted?
jason
Penny Wong is a buffoon. Her position is pretty symptomatic of Australian gay people in general. Many of them hate themselves. Most Australian gay people think that a gay bar is where you go to see men dress up as women in order to mime to bad songs.
L.
Say, Penny – given that “on the issue of racial oppression the reality is there is a cultural, religious, historical view around that”, should we respect that too? No? You sure?
Alan
@axos: “I’ve never ever seen that work.”
Well, unless you were also part of the Australian Cabinet, you wouldn’t have the opportunity to see that work, would you?
Mark, an aussie
@GayGOP: You’re right. We had a council member in Noosa who went against the party line on amalgamation about three years ago and booted out of the party. It’s not the same as in America so I do understand her position though I don’t agree with it, I do understand it.
Mark, an aussie
@jason: Uh, don’t think you’ve spent much time in Australia mate.
Michael
Some are suggesting she is intentionally following the party…..to fly under the radar….to then reach the top and do something about it then ie support gay marriage…..I dont know if I like that theory
Michael
watch @ 39:40 mark…
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/qanda/txt/s2958214.htm?clip=rtmp://cp44823.edgefcs.net/ondemand/flash/tv/streams/qanda/qanda_2010_ep25.flv
John
She won’t become Prime Minister, so how will this under the radar approach work? So ALP members are obligated to be against gay marriage? No room for marriage equality supporters? She SHOULD resign… that would do more to change the party, spotlight it, isolate it, show how cowardly its acting.
Ian
I guess this bitch has an ex-girlfriend that wants to get married to her new lady-lover and this is her way of revenge in her mind.
James
I’m appalled by this article. Out of complete ignorance of how the Australian political process works, everyone is dogpiling on Australia’s most high profile queer politician because when given the extremely hard choice of her livelihood and political future or her “activist credentials” she chose to keep her job.
If anything is despicable about any of this, it’s queerty’s reaction and that she was forced to make the choice in the first place. She’s the climate minister, this doesn’t fall under her perview, we should not be forcing her to become Penny Wong: Minority Warrior, just because she has chosen to be out. She chose being able to do more for the issue she got into politics for rather than making her sexuality all there is to her.
There is MUCH more to Penny Wong than her sexuality, and if anyone should be ashamed it is you for not being able to see that. If she wants to keep working tirelessly for the environment, being out should not force her to change that.
Shame on you, Queerty, and shame on all the commenters who censor through the comment rating system any opposing viewpoint. We should be fighting for a world where being out is no big deal, instead of one where being out means you’re suddenly the GAY candidate. For goodness sake, it’s four weeks until the election. Let the woman get re-elected and then see what she does.
Chris
Seriously queerty, you’re a bunch of dipshits.
If you actually WATCHED the program Q and A last night, you would have seen that she does not in fact believe marriage is for one man and one woman, but she simply cannot do anything about it. As she said last night she is constantly pressuring her party a change in this policy and without her we wouldn’t have the hospital visitation rights and tax benefits that we do now as de facto couples. Without penny we wouldnt have a major advocate in the labour party. Its called journalistic research morons, try it out sometime.
Adam, also an Aussie
I know Queerty headlines are often overblown, but to describe Penny Wong as a “Despicable Lesbian Senator” is ridiculous. If you’d acutally watched Q and A last night, you would have seen that she handled a difficult question in an articulate and dignified manner, for which she should be applauded.
John
Bullshit on the “this isn’t in her area” defense – she’s still a Senator, no? I may have limited knowledge of Aussie politics and mechanics, but I’m pretty positive her role as Senator requires her to have an opinion on various issues that will come up.
I just think it’s despicable that a gay politician is being forced to vote/speak against her conscience just to keep her current job.
James
@John: It doesn’t change the fact that it is a problem with the party system here in Australia, and not with Ms Wong. As a queer South Australian, who is therefore within her constituency as a senator I still support her 100%. And you’d better bloody believe I’ll be voting for her within the month. She has done so much for queer causes and suddenly when she chooses to keep her job so she can still affect change we call her despicable?
I am ashamed of the “Queer community” for turning back on one of the core principles we supposedly believe in: that queer people shouldn’t have to choose between their openess about their sexuality and their family, career, etc. By dogpiling on Ms Wong, queerty is doing just that. It makes me almost ill to think about how a brave, compassionate, talented politician like Ms Wong could be brought down by something like this.
That’s the biggest problem with queer activism these days. There’s no compromise, no patience. I know we’ve waited long enough for equality and shouldn’t have to wait any longer. But bringing down our fellow queers because they refuse to sacrifice their careers on the altar of making a futile gesture that will ultimately harm the cause of queer rights in Australia anyway is sick. It’s just plain sick, and anyone who calls Ms Wong a hypocrite, despicable, or says she should be ashamed is first of all ignorant, and second of all, really needs to wake up to the fact that attacking our own is NEVER the way to advance our cause.
Ted C.
“It’s as if American Sen. Jared Polis went along with the White House’s defense of DOMA simply because he and the president are both Democrats.”
Not quite. Australia doesn’t have the same separation of powers that the United States has between the executive and legislature.
President Obama can’t affect Jared Polis’ career, but Prime Minister Juliard can directly affect Senator Wong’s career (by choosing to give her a Cabinet position or not).
I’m not defending Wong’s statements. I’m just saying there’s more to it than party loyalty.
Ted C.
@John: I know it’s stupid, but her position as a Cabinet minister somewhat trumps her position as a Senator. That’s one of the realities of Australian politics. (Every Cabinet minister finds themselves in the same position sometime.)
Also, the Australian Labor Party has a tradition of “binding caucuses”, where the members aren’t allowed to vote against the party platform.
Ted C.
And I totally messed up Julia Gillard’s name. Ha. Well, it’s 3 in the morning.
Perspective!
Well I guess Queerty you would rather Penny Wong be sidelined and left Labor Party. Vote the Greens then. I’ll see how far you can get. This country is inhabited by others who don’t support you cause as well. And there are a lot of them in our parliament, where decisions concerning this country is made. If you don’t join the party that can and bring about change within, you might as well join the parties that won’t. And these are the Greens and the Coalition.
John
How depressing. I thought American politics were bad.
We also have a lesser of two evils thing going on in the U.S. between the GOP and the Dems when it comes to equality.
But when I hold my nose and vote, I can at least point to some politicians in my party’s ranks who are working actively and publicly to change the party’s platform and voting.
“I accept that you and some other people in the community would like us to have a different position in terms of marriage. That isn’t the position of the party.”
Penalizing someone for speaking out seems very oppressive, especially when it involves their life and experience. Poor Ms Wong – I don’t envy her position – but I would hope if I were in that position I would speak out as my heart dictated and let the cards fall where they may.
But alas, she has reduced herself to being a government robot unable to speak out on the courage of her convictions once in office. She had no trouble with this while campaigning.
Profile in courage? I think not.
Hass
This article displays a complete ignorance of the way the political system works in Australia.
Cabinet is drawn from the parliament. Any MP or Senator who is in cabinet must respect the principle of “cabinet solidarity”. Once cabinet makes a decision you have to support that decision publicly – even if you argued vigorously against it during the debate in cabinet.
If you want to break with cabinet solidarity then you have to resign as a minister.
It would be a shame if Penny Wong resigned from cabinet just so she could more strongly champion same-sex marriage in public. After all, her efforts to support gay rights inside cabinet have been quite successful.
In 2008, the government (of which Penny Wong was a senior cabinet minister) introduced sweeping reforms which gave same-sex couples equal rights when it comes to superannuation, social security, immigration, tax and family law.
These changes were an even more important reform (in my opinion) than gay marriage because of the practical benefits they secured for gay couples.
It will be nice if Australia can take the more formal step of introducing civil unions or gay marriage, but that’s more likely to come about with Penny Wong INSIDE cabinet than with her sitting on the backbenches as a martyr to the gay cause.
John
@Hass:
It’s an incredibly sad situation. You have an out lesbian being forced to held her tongue on an issue of great importance to many in her community, gay and straight.
Not only that, adding insult to injury, she must defend it. She must speak of “solidarity” and incremental change. She must flap in the wind… solidarity. One day they’ll repay her, right?
One day they’ll decide to stop respecting ” cultural, religious, historical” precedence and grant equality to Ms Wong and her partner.
And it’ll all be worth it.
But not today.
Harley
Cabinet solidarity is not some extra burden just for lesbians.
Homophobic cabinet members in Australia (yes, there are several) also have to defend sweeping equal rights reforms that gave same-sex couples the same rights as opposite-sex couples virtually all areas of government, including taxation, family law, health, workplace protections, etc.
Every time the issue of gay rights comes up, they have to spout the value of non-discrimination, why gays should serve in the military, and that gay parents are entitled to the same rights as God-fearing Christian heterosexuals who saved themselves until marriage.
Have you ever seen a homophobic US senator do that? The US doesn’t even close to the same protections and equal treatment for LGBT people. Pick any US state, likewise, not even close.
This is because while the US remains fixated to more than 1000 exclusive rights for married couples, Australia abolished that ‘exclusive rights’ concept altogether. It did so because people like Wong didn’t throw a fit when the starting position wasn’t great. They stayed and fixed it.
Essentially, Queerty and John are attacking her for securing a better deal for LGBT Australians than any of your own politicians could realistically hope for.
PS. Seriously, every time Aussie politics comes up Queerty forgets that readers had to correct its last story on the issue. Can the editors remember these explanations of parliamentary mechanics for next time?
jason
Australia is a hole. Its claim to being gay-friendly is a trick designed to attract tourists. As for the Australian Labor Party, it’s socially conservative. Don’t fall for the notion that a center-left Party like the Labor Party is socially progressive.
Also, Australia’s gays are mostly dopey. They’re sort of semi-conscious rather than out there actively arguing for change.
jason
Nobody cares about you Australians and your phoney claims to living in a gay-friendly country. My friend who lived there for a while said that poofter-bashing is still a pursuit. This involves organized groups of men setting out to bash gay men at night, usually. Don’t deny that it happens.
Australia is like an immature version of America, and is populated by people with less education than those in Mississipi.
Cam
Whats the Australian phrase for “Uncle Tom”?
Brian
@jason: Well, Jason, you clearly care about Australia, it’s one of your pet obsessions along with the “everyone’s a bisexual” mantra. I lived there for four years and had a great time and met a lot of great people, but I don’t feel at all equipped to make sweeping generalizations about the country. Buy hey, you had a friend who spent some time there, and are willing to condemn the whole place as a hole and all the people as stupid on that flimsy connection. It’s sort of the same thing you do with the bisexual thing. Because you’re one, you’ve decided everyone is, all evidence to the contrary. A little humility in forming your opinions will take you a lot further.
horus
@Cam: second that!
axos
I said earlier that I’ve never seen it work when people say one thing in public but then work for something else on the inside – I was speaking generally, with other battles in mind.
But now I’ve read what the Australian friends had to say about their political system and their respect for Wong, so it seems I was wrong in this case. And perhaps Queerty should make some changes in their article?
Nick Farben
SURPRISE! A spineless politician. All this proves is that she’s a politician first, lesbian later, and if you don’t like the Labor party policy (targeted at right-leaning moderates), then vote for the Greens (like I’m doing). But hurling around adjectives best left for serial killers and the like, that’s just unnecessary.
As for all the comments about Australia and Australians again, I find this very strange. We’re an entire continent. Believing that all of Australians are gay-friendly or gay-bashing is just silly. If I drew conclusions as to what ALL Americans are based on stuff I’ve heard from friends, reports in the media and even my holiday experiences in California and Las Vegas, I’d have a very skewed and highly inaccurate assumption.
@John We’re a big fucking country with as horrible a political system as any. Don’t worry, America doesn’t have the patent on goddamn-lying-politicians. Jerks will find a way to exist in any country.
John
@Harley:
Pick any state? A handful of states have legalized gay marriage. And California has had an extensive domestic partnership program in places for nearly a dozen years, which has been subsequently buffed every few years. California bans discrimination on sexuality and gender identity when it comes to housing, health care, schooling, the right to adopt, etc.
That’s not to say improvement isn’t needed – Californians banned gay marriage in 2008 by a slim margin. It was a hurtful outcome, but one hopes and knows that, over time, that 51-49 margin will reverse and we’ll have full equality in this state. As for right nationally… that’s a long time off. The nature of our Senate requires a supermajority in order to overcome a minority opposition. All hail the filibuster.
(California has a population of 37 million, according to a 2009 estimate. Australia has 22 million.)
James
What is sad about all this is that noone is paying attention the the fact that she never said she was against gay marriage, jst that we must act with respect and that her party is not supporting it at this time. She then went on to say in a different interview that she has been “Work[ing] hard to change the party’s position.”
Labor has hardly left gay couples in the dust. You think that America is so great because a handful of states have legalised gay marriage?
in 2008, we had basically nothing to show for our struggles. Labor went into the previous election promising sweeping reform. they provided in the last three years:
Reforms that ensure that same-sex couples are able to access the same tax concessions available to married and opposite?sex de facto couples.
Reforms that ensure that Commonwealth superannuation funds treat same-sex couples and their children equally in superannuation benefits, including death benefits and pensions. Private superannuation funds will also be able to recognise a same-sex de facto partner who is nominated as a beneficiary in the same way as an opposite-sex partner.
Same-sex de facto couples are now assessed as a couple and receive the same rates of social security and family assistance payments as an opposite-sex de facto couple. These laws will also allow for the recognition of children of same-sex couples.
Same?sex couples will now be able to access the Medicare or Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) safety nets as a family.
Under the reforms same-sex de facto couples will be treated in the same way as opposite-sex couples with regards to aged care.
Same-sex de facto couples now have parental recognition of their children under the family law act.
When it comes to immigration, same-sex partners of Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents and eligible New Zealand citizens will be able to apply for the same partner visas as opposite-sex partners. Same-sex couples (and their children, in many cases) will have the same entitlements in relation to acquiring citizenship.
Defence and Veterans’ Affairs reform: The changes in relation to defence and veterans’ affairs allow same-sex couples to access entitlements, including the provision of assistance to members of the Defence Force to acquire homes; certain pensions and other benefits becoming available to same-sex partners widows or widowers; and other benefits, including death benefits.
Think that’s nothing? Think Penny Wong is an Uncle Tom? Think America treats its gays so much better? We have federal recognition of our relationships and we have Labor and by extention Penny Wong to thank for that.
John
@James:
Defensive much? This isn’t a pissing contest, unfortunately. This is a story about a lesbian cabinet member choosing political expediency over her conscience. Instead of adding personal qualifications when stating the party’s platform, which she could’ve done, we have a robotic, analytical, cold response.
She went even further: to support gay marriage would be to disrespect the “cultural, religious, historical view.”
It’s just a tortured, vile thing to watch. I wish her and Australia the best though.
James
No. This is the story of one lesbian choosing to remain effective instead of sacrificing her career on the altar of futile gesture and the “Gay community” making martyrdom an expectation rather than a choice.
You think she could have actively spoken out against her party and defied the factions and not had consequences? Ask Kevin Rudd how he’s doing these days.
John
Futile gesture? Saying you support equality for gay and lesbian couples shouldn’t be this big of a deal. Especially for a lesbian in a commited relationship.
Perhaps she should’ve never come out. I’m sure that has limited her political standing… considering that the merely stating a belief that her relationship has just as much merit as hetero ones could get her sacked by this progressive government.
“On the issue of marriage I think the reality is there is a cultural, religious, historical view around that which we have to respect.”
Lesser of two evils indeed.
Derek Williams
I was conceived and brought up by heterosexual parents in the company of heterosexual siblings in an openly heterosexual society. I was educated at a religious private school, which taught me all about loving heterosexual marriage. Without exception, dramaturgical portrayals of relationships to which I was exposed were heterosexual.
Notwithstanding this, I still managed to turn out entirely homosexual, which, given the above circumstances, could be said to be surprising. Gay was not an easy thing to be in the 1960’s, when I could have been imprisoned, merely for having this positive interaction with another human being. Yet my life was made rewarding and fulfilling by the love and unstinting support of friends, colleagues, and most of all, my family who never once treated me any less favourably because my passion was for a person of the same gender as my own.
There is no doubt that LGBT rights we have already gained could never have made it into legislature without the overwhelming support given by the heterosexual majority, responding to our appeals for human compassion, justice and fair play.
There is also no doubt that the public perception of a great many cogent issues of public interest has been profoundly changed by individual activism and education, such as Aneurin Bevan’s founding of the NHS in the UK, Florence Nightingale’s championing of the high nursing standards we enjoy today, the enactment of women’s suffrage, emancipation of slaves in the USA, and the outspoken advocacy of Harvey Milk. In all these cases public opinion changed, because it was ultimately seen to be right. The veil of ignorance and prejudice was lifted by strong individuals of high moral character, who never gave up.
While there is not universal support even in the gay and lesbian communities for gay marriage, few would want to deny this to people who seek it. Marriage has formalised the love and mutual commitment of countless heterosexual Australian couples, and recent poll results on the subject now make it clear that they do not wish to deny this to others wishing the same lawful acknowledgment for their relationships.
The granting of universal access to marriage and all that it connotes does not in any way threaten heterosexual marriage. Heterosexual marriage will be as strong as ever, no matter whether we have gay marriage or not.
The electorate voted Penny Wong into office knowing her to be lesbian, thus giving her a platform from which to articulate public advocacy on any issue she sees fit. Her aboutface is therefore doubly disappointing because it appears to be more the response to faint heartedness and meanspiritedness, than rational thought. These are not qualities to be admired in anyone, let alone in a politician.
Martin Murray
Politicians thrive on receiving feedback from their constituents.
Tell Penny Wong about how you feel about her support for homophobic discrimination.
She has an online feedback form.
Contact her here:
http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/senators/homepages/contact.asp?id=00AOU
Michael of Melbourne
Why is it that every time a story features about Australia on Queerty…….it automatically becomes an Aus vs USA fight??….F’ing rediculous if u ask me!!
If Labour is reellected in a few weeks…..things could be worse! I think Aus is proud of the changes they have achieved…..but we also, want that little bit extra…….at least I believe we will receive it once the government knows they won’t be thrown out once they support same sex marriage…..maybe this is optimistic since poll after poll shows around 60% of Australians support it……how many % dont give a sh&t? As always its about the polls……after all julia is living in sin….so maybe she just wants the vote to be reelected…..
Once Labour is back in then we will have a discussion…….
There was a great series of videos from Equal Love back in ’09……..thought I’d share this one…..watch the other 4 if you wish
http://www.youtube.com/user/EqualLove09#p/u/4/agGCyyD6D60
gilber
how sad, what a nasty piece of cunt
James
@John:
@Michael of Melbourne:
I’m not trying to turn this into a pissing contest. I’m just sick of people trashing my country and its record on gay rights simply because we’re lagging behind on the marriage issue. We’re not a ‘hole’. ‘Gay bashing’ isn’t a national past time any more than it is in other western nations. All I was trying to say is that the current Australian Gov’t, of which Wong is a major part actually has quite a good record on gay rights.
We’re making huge steps forward, but we sometimes in the lead up to a federal election need to choose to placate people we otherwise wouldn’t, so we have three more years with which to make progress, rather than standing on principle and becoming ineffective as a result. Or to put it another way, Wong knows how to lose a battle in order to win a war.
There are three weeks before the federal election. Given her record thus far, and her stated intention of “Work[ing] very hard to try and improve the parties position and policies on gay and lesbian Australians” I’m more than willing to let a comment like “We must act with respect, by the way, my party doesn’t support it yet” slide.
She never said her position was one man one woman, she said her party’s was. She also has said on multiple occasions she’s working to change her party.
ewe
Very few Asian women age gracefully. She is a perfect example. She no doubt is catering to the ignorant spawn of Australian criminals. (which is pretty much everybody in the country)
Wow, its so much fun being hateful and throwing around stereotypes. I think i will continue to do it whenever it is done to me. YEE HAW
John
@James:
She did not say that. She said:
“On the issue of marriage I think the reality is there is a cultural, religious, historical view around that which we have to respect,”
“The party’s position is very clear that this is an institution that is between a man and a woman.”
“I am part of a party and I support the party’s policies.”
No qualifications or anything in her statements. Just a mindless robot… do as she says, vote for her party, trust her… wink wink, nod nod.
jason
Ewe,
LOL. Yes, Australians are descended from criminals.
FluffyInDrag
This sort of represents a lot of what I hate about activism… so much focus on what has not been done, what is wrong, what is hated. The negativity sickens me.
A lot of people claim that ours is a movement of love and tolerance.
How about showing a bit of that, Queerty, instead of cannibalizing those who are ultimately doing what they can, or anything at all, for our cause?
No, it’s not enough. Nothing is ever enough. But it’s something and I should hope that people would show more gratitude for what Wong HAS accomplished, rather than berating her for what she has not. No one wants a thankless job and the less we thank, I think, the fewer people will be willing to step up to bat.
See, when it comes down to it there is the same problem in Australia as there is in much of the world when it comes to equality and reform… these changes must be accepted by society before they can be put into law. Given, Aus is further along in the process than most, including my own miserly country, but there is still the struggle with politics always lagging a bit behind social norms. As more of the younger generations work their way up the food chain the changes will come easier, but until then I think patience and appreciation goes a lot farther than snarky articles and comments.
dwmusic
@FluffyInDrag:
Point taken, up to a point.
It is true that activism does tend to attract negativity – it’s the nature of the beast because it is activists’ role to point out and campaign against what they see as being wrong. This should be targetting public education as well as the legislature.
I agree credit should indeed be given where it’s due.
In regards to your point that changes must be accepted by society before legislative change can be successful, this I also agree with, however change has always been spearheaded by passionate people who find ways of endlessly articulating their cause without necesarily causing massive offence.
Wong could have distanced herself from the ALP position, but apparently “he who pays the piper, calls the tune.”
j
i feel ashamed to in Australia now, i thought that given being a lesbian that’s she would stand up for the gay and lesbian community
but obviously her pussy don’t get eaten out as much for her to act this way!!!
how rude!
Queut96
Hi I feel like doing this topic so hi
Aussie Jim
Where is my Roof Insulation Penny Wong?
how bout doing ya job instead of being so hung up on gay marriage.
shes gay, big bloody deal.
we just want our roof insulation
.
marriages so often fail whats the obsession with marriage?
live together claim defacto double bang your names instead.