The more I watch the debate around marriage equality, the more forcibly I am reminded of the fight for women to be allowed to vote. The more things change, the more they stay the same, it seems.
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A postal plebiscite?
A postal vote on same-sex marriage could circumvent parliament as it wouldn't require legislation, according to Peter Dutton.
When women were fighting for the right to vote, more than 100 years ago, they were faced with dogged resistance from many of the same groups who are currently opposing the rights of those who wish to marry a member of the same sex. The suffragettes' most formidable opponent was the conservative religious establishment, just as it is for gay people now. I suppose it makes a certain kind of sense for the powerful and the privileged to tend to be more conservative than many other (although not all) groups in society. If society as it is now is currently serving you perfectly well (and how else could you have become powerful and privileged) then it is unsurprising any change is threatening, even if it doesn't directly affect you.
The women and men fighting for universal suffrage (the phrase even has echoes of marriage equality) also had to deal with many opposing arguments that sound frighteningly familiar and just as subtly insulting.
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Women were told that it was simply unnatural for women to vote. Many fulminated from church pulpits and the benches of parliament that allowing women to exercise suffrage would literally unsex them. Women were told they were not capable of exercising their rights sensibly and thoughtfully. Nasty, misogynistic cartoons were drawn of hideous harridans deserting their husband and families. Women gaining their rights would somehow oppress their husband's rights apparently. Biblical quotes were dragged up supporting the idea that women participating in public and political life was against the word of God. Thanks for nothing, St Paul.
Most tellingly of all, opponents exhorted anyone who would listen to "think of the children". Women at the ballot box, according to them, would destroy the family and unravel right-thinking society.
Opponents of same sex marriage use many of the same arguments now. Homosexuality is unnatural, the most vociferous opponents proclaim. The LGBTQI community is not capable of fidelity and loyalty in marriage, according to some. Nasty, homophobic cartoons (and recently, after dinner speeches) have been circulated. People of the same sex gaining equal rights to marry would somehow oppress the rights of the religious, apparently. Biblical quotes are often declaimed to support really nasty views of LGBTQI people. Thanks for nothing, Leviticus.
And how many times have you heard a marriage equality opponent plead with you to "think of the children of same sex marriages" despite evidence that they do not just as well as other children, but actually rather better? Equal marriage, according to them will destroy the family, freedom of religion, and unravel right-thinking society.
The parallels continue as the fight intensifies. When suffragettes got sick of playing nice and waiting (waiting, waiting, waiting) for the vote, and began a campaign of civil disobedience the backlash and outrage at their conduct was deafening. Their unladylike (and then some) behaviour was defeating their own cause, they were told.
When marriage equality activists unleash their fury on public figures who oppose their rights, to the extent of forcing Coopers Beer to apologise publicly for its naive, probably well-intentioned, but unfortunate foray into the arena, they are finger-wagged in precisely the same way.
Yet, when female suffrage eventually became the norm (not until 1971 in Switzerland) precisely nothing changed and very, very quickly, nothing more was said about the matter. In countries that have enacted marriage equality (almost every developed country except Australia) the same has occurred. People of the same sex can now get married and no-one even talks about it much anymore. None of the dire predictions have eventuated. Even Donald Trump has said he is not interested in changing the law.
What is very different about the two struggles for full human rights, this time around, is how much Australia has changed. A century ago, we were among the earliest countries in the world to give women the vote. South Australia was the fourth place in the world to give women the vote and the first Australian colony to do so. Now, we are one of the very, very last who still refuse to give equal marriage rights to people of the same sex.
I really hope we don't end up being as embarrassing as Switzerland.
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