AI Chat Search Browse Media On This Day Map Quotations Timeline Research Free Datasets Remembered About Contact

Public "weary" of childless gay lawmakers

Fri 8 Jul 2005 In: New Zealand Daily News View at Wayback

Last month, she mocked lesbian parents. This month, Dominion Post Rosemary McLeod is attacking the gays that don't have children. In a 7 July column entitled Meddling with gay abandon, McLeod observes that “people resent a Government they see as being heavily influenced by gays making laws about parenting" because "there ARE ways in which gay people and straight people differ. The most blindingly obvious of these is in having children..." McLeod concludes from a recent survey that showed public opposition to the anti-smacking proposals, that "we are becoming weary...of having self-styled experts moralising about how families treat their children – the very experts who so resent anyone else moralising about other sorts of conduct." Gay MP Tim Barnett, whom McLeod describes as "both gay and childless" came under fire for being the architect of prostitution law reform, and for saying it shouldn't be automatically assumed that children of working prostitutes are in danger. "He is also not a woman, and to my mind his advocacy of that position was mischievous," McLeod writes. If Barnett had children, McLeod says, he wouldn't hold the opinions he does. "He'd know a lot more about the needs and rights of children, something his Government is so hot on when it comes to spanking their bottoms. And he would understand how powerfully protective normal parents feel toward their children, whom they do not knowingly expose to danger."    

Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff

First published: Friday, 8th July 2005 - 12:00pm

Rights Information

This page displays a version of a GayNZ.com article that was automatically harvested before the website closed. All of the formatting and images have been removed and some text content may not have been fully captured correctly. The article is provided here for personal research and review and does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of PrideNZ.com. If you have queries or concerns about this article please email us