Comments on: The long march to equality

By: BM

BM — Wed, 31 Dec 2014 11:44:24 +0000

Some rather dubious “journalism” here..

1. The ACT motion in 1973 was just that – a motion in the Federal Parliament (there was no ACT legislative body at that point) and It wasn’t enacting any law. So to say the ACT “decriminalised” it in 1973 is simply wrong.

2. The Prime Minister did not “ratify” the ACT law – the Attorney General did. And this was after the ACT legislative body was set up under statute.

3. The Commonwealth Government does not and never did have the power to directly make criminal law in regard to this issue. The 1994 legislation was an attempt to implement Australia’s international treaty obligations. It did not make law per se on the issue, but highlighted the incompatibility of Tasmanian law with Australia’s treaty obligations which no doubt led to the Croome High Court Case.

Get the facts right please SSO and don’t just copy/paste from Wikipedia!

By: Robert French

Robert French — Wed, 26 Nov 2014 06:52:04 +0000

Blair, you and the article are correct. It was a re-elected Dunstan Government but the Bill was introduced by the Attorney-General Peter Duncan. I often think that Duncan doesn’t get due recognition.

By: Blair Martin

Blair Martin — Tue, 25 Nov 2014 13:36:44 +0000

Slight typo:
” Several reform efforts were thwarted until a re-elected Duncan introduced a bill in August 1975, and after numerous readings it was passed on the same day by both houses. ”

Should be “Dunstan” not “Duncan”

By: Paul of Forbes NSW

Paul of Forbes NSW — Tue, 25 Nov 2014 12:44:13 +0000

What an excellent article, all current and future gay activists should read and brush up on the history in the past 40 years!

We still have a long way to go in 2014:

* Marriage Equality for the all of the Commonwealth of Australia!
* Adoption equality in NT, VIC, SA and QLD!
* Surrogacy equality in WA and SA!
* IVF access for single women and lesbians in SA!
* The “abolishment” of the “gay panic defence” (GPD) in SA and QLD!
* Expungement of gay sex criminal conviction records in QLD, NT, WA, TAS and ACT (only laws passed in VIC, NSW and SA)

By: Nick Henderson

Nick Henderson — Tue, 25 Nov 2014 09:31:53 +0000

The Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives' 14th Australia's Homosexual Histories Conference is on in Sydney THIS Friday and Saturday, 28-29 Nov, presented by the Pride History Group in conjunction with the Australian Centre for Public History (UTS). Program: http://camp.org.au/ahhc14/ahhc14-program-summary Registration: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/australian-homosexual-histories-conference-2014-tickets-12541169977?aff=es2&rank=1

By: Scott Mitchell

Scott Mitchell — Tue, 25 Nov 2014 08:55:29 +0000

Love the pic used