Homosexuality in Australia

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Geographical location of Australia

Homosexuality iswidely accepted socially in Australia . Homosexual acts between men and women are not a criminal offense. The nationwide Human Rights (Sexual Conduct) Act 1994 - Section 4 alsolegalizedhomosexual acts in Tasmania , the only state that had not yet decriminalized same-sex intercourse.

Anti-discrimination laws

Anti-discrimination laws for lesbians and gays exist in the states of New South Wales , Queensland , South Australia , Tasmania and Victoria .

Age of consent

The age of consent is set differently in Australia depending on the state and varies between 16 and 21 years. In 1997, the Australian Government and the UN Human Rights Committee brought the age of consent for homosexual acts into line with that for heterosexual acts.

Same-sex marriage

Legal position to recognize same-sex partnerships in Australia
  • Same-sex marriage

    • History of State Recognition of Same Sex Couples in Australia

    Registered partnerships were initially allowed in some Australian states and territories, for example in the states of Tasmania , South Australia or the Australian Capital Territory . According to an announcement by the social democratic politician Steve Bracks , the state of Victoria implemented the introduction of registered partnerships in December 2008. Since July 2010, registered partnerships have been allowed in the Australian state of New South Wales . In early December 2011, registered partnerships were made possible through parliament in the state of Queensland . At the federal level, however, same-sex partnerships were not recognized and same-sex marriage was banned by the Marriage Act since 2004 . Co- adoption for same-sex partner couples has been allowed in the states of Australian Capital Territory , Western Australia , New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria . In March 2018, the Northern Territory became the last state to allow joint adoption by married same-sex couples.

    Same-sex marriage introduced in Australia

    The Australian Labor Party advocated the nationwide opening of marriage to homosexual couples in Australia at its party conference in December 2011. The draft law to open marriage nationwide failed in September 2012. In autumn 2013, several legislative initiatives on marriage began in the states of New South Wales , Victoria , South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory .

    In October 2013, marriage was officially opened for same-sex couples in the Australian Capital Territory . The first same-sex couples married in the capital on December 7, 2013.

    On November 15, 2017, the national referendum on opening marriage for same-sex couples was announced publicly. After that, 61.6 percent of the votes cast voted in favor of opening marriage. The Australian Senate approved same-sex marriage on November 29, 2017. On December 7, 2017, the Australian House of Representatives endorsed same-sex marriage. The opening of marriage for same-sex couples comes into force on January 1, 2018.

    The definition of marriage was changed to a genderless formulation: "A marriage is the union of two people" . This makes it possible to marry non-binary people, something that LGBT activists like Norrie May-Welby and Tony Briffa had advocated for years.

    History of the Lesbian and Gay Movement

    Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (2006)

    The Australian organization of the lesbian and gay movement Daughters of Bilitis was founded in Melbourne in 1969, inspired by the corresponding movement in the United States , and was the first Australian organization to campaign for lesbian rights in Australia. As the members distanced themselves a few months later from the increasing radicalization of the American group, the organization was renamed the Australian Lesbian Movement .

    The Society Five was founded in January 1971 in Melbourne. The organization was a regional offshoot of the nationwide Campaign Against Moral Persecution network and is considered the founder of the Australian gay movement . The name of the organization (Society Five) refers to the assumed percentage of gays and lesbians in the population. In 1981 it broke up due to internal conflicts.

    In the late 1970s, the Gay Teachers Group and the Homosexual Law Reform Coalition were founded as other organizations committed to promoting homosexual equality.

    Since 1978 is a year in Sydney of Mardi Gras committed. It's the Australian equivalent of Christopher Street Day . The focus is on a large street festival of gays , lesbians , transgender people and their friends with a parade, which takes place in February / March (summer on the southern hemisphere). There are many other cultural events and festivities around the date. Around 450,000 visitors now attend the events and, according to a profitability analysis, the state of New South Wales is benefiting from them with more than $ 46 million.

    The law was repealed in Tasmania in 1997 after federal law, the Human Rights (Sexual Conduct) Act 1994 - Section 4, stipulated that consensual intercourse between adults over the age of 18 in private space should not be punished.

    Events

    When homophobic slogans were chanted at a football match between Sydney FC and a club from the surrounding area in early 2007 , the Sydney fans, according to Damien Eames, Marketing Manager at Mardi Gras, trumpeted back: “We are Queer ! We are here! We drink a lot of beer! " (German: " We are the other way around! We are here! We drink lots of beer! " ), Which is very unusual in the football scene. ( see also homophobia in football )

    In 1994 the successful film Priscilla - Queen of the Desert was shot about three drag queens stranded in a small town on their journey across Australia. In 2006 this film was shown in Sydney as the first Australian film adapted for the stage musical. An American film version of this material was shot in 1995 under the title To Wong Foo .

    In December 2007, the Labor Party under Kevin Rudd wins the general election; For the first time, Penny Wong, an openly lesbian woman, is appointed minister in Australia.

    The Australian Supreme Court overturned a gay marriage law in December 2013. The judges brought down a rule that allowed same-sex couples in the region around the capital Canberra to say yes.

    Homosexuality in the media

    watch TV

    In addition to the television channel QueerTV, which has a homosexual target group, there are also various television productions with homosexual content:

    • Aussie Queer Eye for the Straight Guy ( reality TV , 2005)
    • House Husbands ( dramedy and first Australian series to focus on a homosexual couple raising children since 2012)
    • Please Like Me , (Dramedy, with several main and secondary homosexual characters, 2013 to 2016)
    • A Place to Call Home , (historical drama with a gay main character (James Bligh), since 2013)
    • Deep Water (crime series dealing with the hate murders of 30 to 80 gay men in Sydney's suburbs in the 1980s and 1990s, 2016)

    Movies

    • The Hidden History of Homosexual Australia, director and screenplay: Con Anemogiannis, SBS Corporation 2004 (DVD) (presentation of the historical development)

    Press

    The top-circulation American homosexual magazines are Q News (since 2002), and Queensland Pride (since 1991).

    See also

    literature

    • Stefanie Heun: Same-sex marriages in a comparative legal perspective: With special consideration of the legal situation in the USA, Canada and Australia (= writings on international law. Volume 110). Doctoral thesis University of Frankfurt / M. 1998. Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1999, ISBN 3-428-09617-7 ).
    • Ursula Raberger: New Queer Oz: Feminist Film Theory and Female Homosexuality in Two Films by Samantha Lang. Print-on-Demand, Verlag Dr. Müller , Saarbrücken 2009, ISBN 978-3-639-22278-4 .

    Web links

    Commons : Homosexuality in Australia  - Collection of Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

    Individual evidence

    1. ↑ a b Human Rights (Sexual Conduct) Act 1994 - Section 4 at the Australasian Legal Information Institute
    2. ^ Tasmania Department of Justice: Relationships Act. ( Memento from July 20, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) In: Justice.Tas.gov.au. November 24, 2009, accessed December 1, 2019.
    3. ^ ABC Australia: SA Upper House passes bill for same-sex rights , December 7, 2006
    4. ↑ Queer.de: Slimmed-down gay marriage in Canberra , May 21, 2008
    5. ↑ Queer.de: Victoria introduces gay marriage
    6. ^ Message: Same-sex register for Victoria. ( Memento from October 19, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) In: News.com.au. April 25, 2007, accessed December 1, 2019.
    7. ↑ 365gay: Australian State Moves Closer To Gay Partner Registry
    8. ↑ StarObserver: Register opens tomorrow
    9. ^ The Sydney Morning Herald: Bligh asks ALP to support gay marriage
    10. ↑ Queer.de: Victoria equates homosexual couples in adoption law
    11. ↑ Team.com : Adoption for same-sex couples now possible across Australia , accessed March 16, 2018.
    12. ↑ Julie Bolcer: Australian Labor Party supports gay marriage. ( Memento of December 6, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) In: Advocate.com . December 5, 2011, accessed December 1, 2019.
    13. ↑ nzz.ch: Parliament rejects permission to open marriage
    14. ↑ queer.de: Australian capital wants to open marriage
    15. ↑ queer.de: First Australian region opens marriage
    16. ^ Deutsche Welle: Opening of marriage allowed in Australia for the time being
    17. ↑ DailyTelegraph: Australia decides on same-sex marriage as postal survey results are revealed
    18. ↑ Guardian.com: Australia's same-sex marriage postal survey: 61.6% yes, 38.4% no
    19. ^ A b Steve Dow: Neither man nor woman. In: SydneyMorningHerald.com.au . June 27, 2010, accessed December 1, 2019.
    20. ↑ Announcement: Parliament resolution: Australia introduces marriage for everyone. In: Tagesspiegel.de . December 7, 2017, accessed December 1, 2019.
    21. ↑ a b Vera Sprothen: Dollar in Pink , Handelsblatt.com, March 1, 2007
    22. ↑ Rainbow Online: World premiere: Priscilla - the queen of the desert as a musical on stage , September 25, 2006
    23. ↑ Der Spiegel: Supreme Court Overturns Gay Marriage , December 12, 2013
    24. ^ Box on the box for Mardi Gras . In: Starobserver.com.au . March 2, 2010. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
    25. ↑ David Alexander: Future of QNews uncertain following owner bankruptcy and “outrageous” workplace contraventions . In: Starobserver.com.au . October 2, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
    26. ↑ Miles Heffernan and Crikey's Matthew Knott: Questions asked about gay publisher's readership claims . In: Crikey.com.au . July 9, 2013. Retrieved July 22, 2017.