All Greens candidates in the Wollongong Council Election will be voting YES in the postal survey on marriage equality, if it goes ahead. The Greens consistently stand for equality. Any two adults who want to marry should be able to do so.
Greens support marriage equality -- every vote, every time
All Greens candidates will be voting YES in the postal survey on marriage equality, if it goes ahead. The Greens consistently stand for equality. Any two adults who want to marry should be able to do so.
Mithra Cox, lead candidate in Ward 1, and Greens mayoral candidate, says, “When two people love each other and decide to get married, it doesn't hurt anyone or infringe on anyone else's rights. The postal survey is designed to be unfair and is rigged against the YES case, so it's up to all of us to make sure everyone gets their ballots in.”
Cath Blakey, lead candidate in Ward 2, says, “The Greens opposed John Howard’s 2004 Marriage Act amendment, which formally prohibited same-sex marriage. A parliamentary vote could simply remove discrimination from the Australian marriage act. Instead the Turnbull government is spending $122 million on a postal survey. My cousin, Rachel Blakey, was able to marry because she and her wife are working in the USA, but they would not have been allowed to marry in Australia, their own country.”
Jamie Dixon, lead candidate in Ward 3, says, “Voting YES is the first stand that all of us who support an inclusive society must take. We need to tell the current federal government that we need an Australian Bill of Rights, and the simple right of union for two people in love is a very fitting place to start. The moment we start qualifying how basic rights are applied, we undermine them all.”
Stephen Young, one of our candidates in Ward 1, says “Right around the world, marriage equality has become a reality. We have an exciting opportunity – let’s get marriage equality in place here too. Most Australians understand that it's an issue of basic fairness – Australians in same sex relationships should be able to marry. Changing the law will also ease the difficulties faced by transgender people, some of whom are forced to divorce when their change of legal gender results in a same-sex marriage. Intersex people also face difficulties in marrying. Marriage equality is an important step towards reducing the discrimination faced by LGBITQ Australians, and their families.”
Joshua Bell, one of our candidates in Ward 3, is an activist in the Marriage Equality campaign. He is one of the organisers of the rally to be held at UoW on 30 August at 12.30 pm. Joshua says, “The right to marry who you love is not a luxury. It is not a privilege. It is a right. Gay men and women do not deserve to feel like second-class citizens simply because of who they love. Most people take for granted the ability to marry, as well as the legal and social benefits that come with it. Same-sex couples instead are faced with people telling them they shouldn’t get married because their kids are the next “stolen generation”. I stand in solidarity with the Queer community. I stand for an equal society, where your worth is not determined by who you are attracted to."