LegaliseLove has been campaiging for marriage equality The drawing of Louisa Wall’s marriage equality from Parliament’s Ballot is being described as “an incredibly significant day for equal rights in New Zealand”. “Now that politicians don’t have the option to ignore the issue, we are confident that the vote will come down on the side of love and equality,” LegaliseLove President Andrew Cunningham. “The issue is largely considered by political parties to be a matter of conscience, meaning that most parties will not force their MPs to vote one way or the other on the issue,” adds Communications Officer Joseph Habgood. “We encourage every single supporter to write to their local MPs to persuade them to vote for the bill, because in this case every vote will count.” LegaliseLove Wellington General Executive member Thomas Coppell continues, saying as a queer New Zealander who one day hopes to get married and have children, he’s absolutely ecstatic at the opportunities this bill will open for me. “In this time and age, someone's sexual orientation or gender identity should not make them a second class citizen under the law. This is a time for our communities, whanau, colleagues and friends to band together to rally support for equality for LGBTI New Zealanders and show solidarity that we as a nation won't stand for discrimination."
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 26th July 2012 - 5:06pm