Over time it will make a great and noticeable difference.

Dear Dr Andrew Leigh

So I noticed that in amongst the media storm surrounding the ‘Anti-Homosexuality Bill’ in Uganda the Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd, had a very interesting thing to say. Although I understand you are aware of his and the Governments stance on the issue I thought I would share this quote with you:

“Australia is a global advocate in support of non-discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and will continue to take opportunities through the United Nations and other channels to urge all governments to end such discrimination.”

As a person who identifies as Queer I should find this quote reassuring, comforting, but I do not. If I were to imagine myself as a queer or non-heterosexual identifying person living overseas, looking to come to Australia I would like to assume this comment would make me feel at ease about coming to this country, but I very much doubt that.

It seems that the Australian Government feels it is ok to talk the talk on the international stage, but when it comes to standing up and walking the walk at home you seem to forget what God gave you legs for. Yes I believe in God, I am in fact Catholic, but what I would like you and your colleagues to understand before you read on is that this is not a discussion based on religion, it is about equality, the right for every human being on this earth to be treated equally.

My name is Frank Gafa and apart from being Catholic I am a First Nation member of the Australian community, I identify as queer and I am living with a disability. All of these facets come together to make me the person that I am, and I would like to think as elected officials that you would not discriminate against me based on any of these facets, but in fact you openly do.

The question of marriage equality in Australia is much more then the right for non-heterosexual identifying people to be able to engage in marriage. It is about societies embedded perception of the other, in this case the others being queers, gays, intersex people, transgender, Bi-sexuals, lesbians and all who do not fit into the perceived norm of heterosexual identity. This perception, of people being immoral, being abnormal, basically being different is made an even easier target by legislation actively saying that these people are not good enough to get married in the eyes of our elected representatives. This fuels the fires of hatred and ignorance which will see many people, young and old, take there lives every day because they feel like an outcast, like they are lesser then others purely based on their sexuality.

Dr Leigh growing up as a First Nation in this country I faced extreme discrimination from my peers about my race. Because of this I could not face two parts of my identity, being queer and living with a disability, because I thought if I did people would hate me even more, and I did not want to lose the only friends I had. My best friend in high school in fact was quite religious and when I decided to come out I was honestly so scared that he would seriously harm or even kill me upon finding out, that I organised to do it at a friends house. Because of the added pressure from society of then being an Indigenous Australian and identifying openly as queer it took me nearly three years to properly accept and get on top of my disability, something that had damaged relationships and caused torment in my life for reasons I could never bring myself to admit to others let alone myself.

Dr Leigh because of discriminatory policy still accepted by your Government, still enforcing the social norm, there are many kids out there who will never be able to admit they are ‘different’. There are kids, even adults who are heterosexual and married out there who are too scared of society, too scared of their mother, father, brother, sister, sibling, their best friend because the Government states that the only relationship that is acceptable enough for marriage is between a man and a women. I can guarantee you that as I write this letter, as you read it, these people are contemplating whether they should lie to themselves to be ‘normal’ or even worse giving up, deciding that this society is not worth being apart of, deciding that life living as the other is not worth it.

I am not saying that giving the right to marry to all citizens in Australia will change all of this, what I am saying is that over time it will make a great and noticeable difference. All I want, all many Australians want is for the Government to live up to their words of being “a global advocate in support of non-discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation”. 

All we want is equality.

Sincerest Regards

Frank Gafa