SameSame.com.au ~ Inside Out Australia

Are Aussies Warming To Same Sex Marriage?

Local News, By Christian Taylor, 16th June, 2009

A national opinion poll released today shows that 60% of Australians support same sex marriage. The poll was conducted by Galaxy polling and commissioned by Australian Marriage Equality and Equal Love, with the support of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG).

“Clearly, Australians believe marriage is first and foremost about love and commitment, not your partner’s gender”, said Peter Furness, Australian Marriage Equality national convenor, in a statement.

“This poll scuttles the only rationale put forward by the Rudd Government for opposing equality, namely that a majority of Australians believe marriage should only be between a man and a woman.”

The full results show 60% support equal marriage, 36% oppose it, with 4% undecided. When broken down further, it found that 64% of Labor voters, 50% of Coalition voters, and 74% of young voters support marriage equality – pretty surprising stats.

Today, proudly gay Greens leader Bob Brown told News Limted, “We’re discriminated against under the marriage laws,’’ before adding that the current Centrelink advertisements are misleading, because they promote equal treatment for both gay and straight couples, which is simply not the case.

Brown also added that he believed that even Christian groups had “moved on” from the issue. “The Australian people are way ahead of the Rudd Government and the Turnbull Opposition.’’

PFLAG national spokesperson, Shelley Argent, said in a statement: “We want to see the relationships of our gay and lesbian children given the same rights and respect as their straight siblings.”

The survey also found that 58% of Australians believe that foreign same-sex marriages should be recognised here.

The results co-incide with the National Day Of Action on marriage equality, which is planned for August 1, with events in all major capital cities.