There's a lot to talk about with this year's Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey. By now, most of you should have received your survey forms which asks one relatively simple question: “Should the law be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry?”
We've collected together all the stories you need to read — from what happens if you can't find your survey to what a "same-sex marriage plebiscite" actually means. (Plus, how to score a "survey sausage"!)
There are few things more Australian than the democracy sausage. Snagging a snag while exercising your right to vote has become one of our nation's most beloved traditions. Unfortunately, there will be no democracy sausage during this week's same sex marriage survey. Only compulsory elections and referendums receive this honour. Boo!
With that said, there are still ways to procure a democracy sausage when you pop your vote into the post. Here are three viable options for your consideration.
There’s currently a rumour spreading like wildfire through Facebook and other social media services that voting ‘YES’ in the upcoming same-sex marriage survey could result in your vote counting against legalising same-sex marriage. That is not the case.
Next month, the country will participate in the Australian Marriage Law survey; a postal vote designed to gauge Australia's appetite for a change to the Marriage Act that would allow same-sex couples to be lawfully wed.
Although the survey is not compulsory, this is an issue that every Australian should absolutely vote on. If you're not on the electoral role or have recently changed addresses, you only have two more days to update your status. Here are all the links and info you will need.
Discussing LGBT rights in conservative religious communities can be particularly challenging, both for people who are newly out and for those of us who simply wish that everyone would just hurry up and get with the civil-rights program. One can feel that those who reject the rights of LGBT people on religious grounds are using dogma as a fig leaf to hide their bigotry, and in many cases that's probably true. But there remain a large number of people raised in religious traditions who nonetheless have changed their views on the place of LGBT people in the broader community -- and even in the narrower world of their church community.
