Homosexual Law Changes (Press, 8 August 1985)

On 8 August 1985, a letter was published responding to views expressed by P. G. Ney regarding the Homosexual Law Reform Bill. The author, E. R. L. Wilson, critiques Ney's perspective as naive, short-sighted, and reactionary. Wilson argues that Ney's viewpoint is naive because it oversimplifies sexuality into a binary choice between homosexuality and heterosexuality, failing to recognise the spectrum of human sexual orientation. Furthermore, Wilson contends that Ney's stance is short-sighted as it overlooks the main objectives of the proposed legislation, which aims to decriminalise consensual homosexual acts between adults, diminish discrimination against homosexuals, and strengthen the emerging supportive attitudes towards them in society. Wilson emphasises that laws cannot alter people's intrinsic attitudes or sexual identities and cautions against interpreting the Homosexual Law Reform Bill as an attempt to control either. He also criticises Ney’s suggestion that unfulfilled heterosexual women are abandoned, labelling it as sexist and implying that it places an obligation on men to address women’s supposed needs. By addressing these points, Wilson presents a case for broader understanding and acceptance of homosexuality and criticises narrow-minded views that fail to contribute to the conversation around the reform. The letter ultimately calls for a more inclusive and enlightened approach to discussions on sexuality and related legislation.

The text on this page is created, in the most part, using Generative AI and so may contain errors or omissions. It is supplied to you without guarantee or warranty of correctness. If you find an error or would like to make a content suggestion please get in contact

The text on this page is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 New Zealand