Permissiveness (Press, 24 September 1985)

In a letter to the editor dated 20 September 1985, Paul Maling responds to Vernon Wilkinson’s claims regarding the treatment of homosexual individuals in New Zealand. Maling argues that Wilkinson holds contradictory views by simultaneously advocating for the prevention of "debasement of the human being" while supporting the criminalisation of individuals based on their sexual orientation. Maling suggests that the costs of heterosexual permissiveness should not fall on homosexuals, who are unfairly treated as scapegoats. He challenges Wilkinson's assertions that homosexuality is linked to acts such as bestiality and incest and maintains that homosexuality should be understood as existing alongside heterosexuality rather than being compared to these other acts. Maling points out that there has been no permissiveness towards homosexuality, highlighting that the Crimes Act of 1961 criminalises landlords who rent to homosexual tenants. He notes that there are numerous legal and social repercussions for homosexual individuals, including surveillance by the Security Intelligence Service, job discrimination, and police powers that allow for random stops and arrests based solely on perceived homosexual intent or acts. Maling concludes by stating that true immorality lies not in being different but in failing to allow others to exist as they are, reinforcing his viewpoint against the criminalisation of homosexuality.

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