Kevin Rudd: It’s NOT too much to ask

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has declared that his Australian Labor Party will not endorse marriage equality, despite moves within the party to do so. Rudd said, "We went to the last election being very clear-cut about our position on marriage under the Marriage Act being between a man and a woman." So what? Parties and politicians change their positions all the time, and there’s no reason that the ALP can’t change theirs. Endorsing marriage equality doesn’t mean the Government has to do anything about it this term, so, if it makes Rudd feel better, they can go to the electorate before they actually adopt marriage equality.

Rudd, who in the past expressed his opposition to same-sex marriage on religious grounds, declared added, "We've also said that in terms of all legal discriminations against same-sex partners that we would act to remove them, and the Attorney-General has been hard at work." It’s a smokescreen, and Australian activists have pointed out the numerous ways in which same-sex Aussie couples are still discriminated against and will continue to be even after Rudd thinks his government is done.

In Australia, like the US, only marriage equality can ensure that all citizens are truly equal. The Australian Labor Party should defy Rudd and commit to achieving marriage equality, but they won’t. Full equality, making sure that same-sex Australians aren’t second-class citizens, those ought to be the commitment of Rudd and the ALP. It’s not too much to ask.

The video above is the latest from Equal Love.