"This poll shows that even after the opposition have thrown the kitchen sink at marriage equality, the majority of kiwis still support the Bill and want to see it passed” - Conrad Reyners A headline screaming a “gay marriage shock” has occurred isn’t washing with the Campaign for Marriage Equality, or GLBTI New Zealanders who have spoken out today. Today’s New Zealand Herald points to its survey showing 48 per cent of those polled said marriage should remain between a man and a woman. It says that's an increase of 7.5 percentage points from a poll last June. The proportion of people surveyed who supported a law change fell four per cent, but still outnumbered the opponents by a small margin. "This poll shows that even after the opposition have thrown the kitchen sink at marriage equality, the majority of kiwis still support the Bill and want to see it passed,” says Conrad Reyners from the Campaign for Marriage Equality. "Other polls, including one commissioned by Family First, clearly show that there is majority support for the Bill. "It’s important to remember the demographics of those polled. Youth are strongly in support of marriage equality - they know that it's not a matter of if marriage equality happens, but of when,” he says. "The campaign is moving full steam ahead and is working on making sure the Bill is not watered down at the Committee of the House stage, and that we have another strong, bold vote at the Bill's third reading." Reyners encourages people to contact their MPs to support the work of the select committee and ask them not to support amendments at the Committee stage that would water down equality. The Gay Auckland Business Association agrees, saying: “This is a huge reminder not to become complacent-things may look positive but there's a vocal opposition out there.” Some GayNZ.com readers have shared their thoughts via Facebook. Maria Avalon says the majority should never be able to deny the rights of the minority, while Hamish Milne echoes “it's important that people understand human rights for minorities shouldn't be voted by the majority”. Joanne Robertson says she takes poll results with a grain of salt, “however I am concerned about stupid people who are highly influenced by skewed newspaper headlines.” Another GayNZ.com reader has written to the Herald to complain about an ensuing poll being run with the online version of the article, which they were able to vote on five times. "The Herald has inserted itself into the political process today in an irresponsible and bias way," Stetson Blue Williams says. In a letter to the Herald, he says “I have been following your coverage of the marriage equality debate for some time now and have finally been disgusted enough to write in. Not only do most of your headlines slant towards the opponents of equality by using polarized language such as 'gay bill' etc, but the poll you published today is the most unscientific piece of garbage imaginable. “All one has to do is switch devices and browsers to vote as many times as you want. And since conservatives have nothing better to do than organize vast actions against vulnerable minorities, then the obvious happens. A 'poll' that is really American Idol.”
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Tuesday, 26th March 2013 - 5:09pm