Auckland mayor Dick Hubbard has wished the gay and lesbian community a merry Christmas, and expressed a desire to mend bridges in the wake of his shock letter to MPs which claimed gay and lesbian parents were more likely to abuse and murder their children. Following a meeting last week with the Gay Auckland Business Association, and a second meeting this week with gay and lesbian community board members, Hubbard says he won't “defend the indefendable” and will look at retracting his comments if provided with research that proves the claims wrong. “You can use figures to prove anything,” he told GayNZ.com. Western Bays community board member Christopher Dempsey says the Mayor will be provided with the alternate resarch. "I'm pleased that the Mayor listened to our concerns, particularly in the area of the 'social research' studies into same-sex parenting. Reputable studies have consistently found no link between same-sex parenting and child abuse, rape or paedophilia," he says. Hubbard says he has received hate mail from some members of the gay community, telling him his soul will rot in hell and wishing that excrement be dropped on his head, which he says has been difficult to receive. “But extremism doesn't worry me, as its on both sides,” he says. “Some of the things from the Destiny Church have been pretty out there too.” However, he accepts now the claims made in the letter were likely to provoke an extreme reaction. “We signed a private and confidential letter that we rather naively thought wouldn't get into the public domain. But I want to be in healing mode now, I don't want to marginalise anyone.” The Mayor says he has no problem with the forthcoming Relationships Bill, which will create the legal effect of equating civil unions with marriage in the statute books. He has also accepted an invitation to attend the Big Gay Out at next year's Hero festival. "I'd like to wish the gay and lesbian community a very merry Christmas and I look forward to a constructive year next year, mending bridges," he says.
Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff
First published: Thursday, 23rd December 2004 - 12:00pm