This new video strongly reflects the politics of the equal marriage movement itself, but is not very representative of lesbians and gays in Australia.
The whole marriage equality push is quite literally rooted in conservatism. It was started by conservative gay white men who, being men, presumably didn’t like to be denied what straight men are entitled to.
My problem with it is that it is based on the principles of assimilation, which is a form of erasure. Did anyone see any butch dykes in the video, for example? No doubt we’re too grotesque for the nice het folks of Australia to have to look at. We’d probably ruin the whole campaign.
The other thing I hate about it is that it promotes one of patriarchy’s primary institutions, one that features highly in the oppression of women (see my other posts for more on my thoughts on this). So how is allowing more women the “right” to it, about equality?
Finally, it really promotes monogamy in a big way, and monogamy sucks in my opinion. It’s a push for yet more couple privilege in a society where couples are already privileged. What of lesbians and gays who are not exclusively partnered, or don’t want to be? This so-called “right” to marriage will eventually cause many gays and lesbians to be even more marginalised than ever. It will cause straights to become more marginalised than ever as the patriarchal ideal of a household set-up which is built around coupledom becomes ever more entrenched as the only way to live. What of single parent families, gay and straight? Siblings living together? Friends living together, or all the other various living arrangements that exist in Australia?
Living as a part of a legally recognised couple brings a hell of a lot of social capital and political and economic privileges. Why should those people be privileged above the rest of us? There is nothing revolutionary about allowing a few extra people into the privilege club. Abolishing the privilege altogether would be revolutionary.
This new ad reflects the conservativism and white malecentrism of the marriage equality movement. Where are the lesbian couples? Where are the poor or poverty class lesbians? Indigenous lesbians? There is one (non-threatening christian) lesbian, who appears without her partner. The other people speaking are either gay men, or straights, straights who claim they want their friends to have this sacred right to marriage. So, where are those friends? Why are they not there speaking for themselves? How is giving straights the power to speak for and define us, in any way progressive?
The older guy at the end is particularly inappropriate, speaking for his son while his son stands there mute. It’s older men who are often the worst for public displays of homophobic abuse. Just because he is convinced that his son should have the right to get married doesn’t mean that he will have less homophobic thoughts about lesbians.
The push to keep an institution that is destructive and harmful for women, lesbian or het, is not my idea of good feminism.
I have never been able to become excited by the whole gay marriage thing. The whole concept is founded to benefit patriarchy, so it is rotten to the core, can’t see that having more diverse groups doing it will make any difference – it will probably just better hide the fact of how exploitative het marriage is for females.
Ah marriage a wonderful institution designed to ensure male domination over women!
Don’t eliminate the male supremacist concept of ‘marriage’ instead homosexual males want the same rights as their heterosexual brothers – the right to dominate and control a person and call it ‘marriage!’
As regards lesbian women – I wonder if they even exist given as always the issue is about white homosexual males wanting the same rights and power as heterosexual white men.
There are so many people excluded from this video I think it is a very clear sign that the movement itself is more about defending an institution rather than promoting anti-homophobia in the community. Gay marriage is more about marriage and less about gay. I mean the video itself is just so homophobic, and as we speak there are straight people patting themselves on the back for being so tolerant and inclusive by participating in it.
Why not have full benefits for individuals? Why do people “have” to get married to have health care? (U.S.) or Social Security survivor benefits? What if we had the right to designate ANYONE we want as beneficiary of an estate, and all tax consequences would be equal?
Really, marriage is a conservative patriarchal institution, and I find it weird that this is THE “gay” issue of the day.
Something that has a 50% failure rate in the U.S. is just not worthy of pining after.
On another note, a little off topic… I’ve never found the general lesbian community all that supportive of couples.
It’s very much a community of singles or a youth culture.
Younger women complain that the elders kind of disappear, and really, those of us who have been in lesbian partnerships for decades are just passed over completely. But marriage rights aren’t the answer. I think lesbian awareness of long term lesbian couples would be helpful.
Could you have expected anything more considering this was made in a sexist, racist white male dominated society?