I am not particularly politically aware, but I have seen enough in the news and on social media to know that Australia is facing some difficult and delicate issues.
Marriage equality, however, is not one of them.
How this topic is still considered controversial is beyond me. I fail to see any negative consequences of legalising gay marriage. I ask you what horrible repercussion would you hope to attribute to same-sex couples being allowed to marry?
Yes, same-sex relationships are already recognised by some government bodies under some circumstances, but anyone who says that is enough is missing the point of marriage equality. Why would we choose to ignore the positive impact on society that giving permission for everyone to celebrate love equally would have? Not to mention the potentially massive boost to the economy when there is an entirely new demographic of couples requiring celebrants, caterers, venues, flowers and wedding planners.
Who are any of us to diminish the significance of two people deciding they have found a love worthy of committing to calling each other "husband" or "wife" for the rest of their lives? This is simple: we need to legalise gay marriage, and start expending more time and resources on issues surrounding refugees, obscene corporate wealth, and domestic violence, to name a few.
