The Families Commission is about to include gay households in its panel discussions on the nature of families in New Zealand. The aim of the panels is to keep the Commission in touch with the views of families in diverse circumstances from across the country. It has a number of groups, of people in similar circumstances, who each meet a number of times a year to discuss particular themes. The Commission has now brought OUTLineNZ on board to facilitate gay parent family panels so they can look at the issues they face in particular. It is tasked with running quarterly focused panel discussions, which it will then report back on to the Families Commission. OUTLine General Manager Vaughan Meneses says it's great to be included by a Commission which was set up by United Future, a traditionally conservative party. "To actually be included and be part of that process is a real positive sign of how New Zealand as a country has progressed and moved to a place where we are having our issues and our needs validated." Anyone who would like to be involved in the panel discussions should get in touch with OUTLine. The first panel is likely to be in September. "Our goal is to make it as diverse a representation as possible," Meneses says.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 15th July 2011 - 11:18am