Lyle Shelton, the head of the campaign against marriage equality, says those arguing for marriage equality lied to the Australian people when they put forward their case for changing the marriage laws.
Shelton, who is the former head of the Australian Christian Lobby, was appearing as a guest on Derryn Hinch’s new Sky News program on Thursday evening.
“We warned during the whole marriage campaign, and in fact in the ten years leading up to to the change to the definition of marriage, that this was going to trigger all sorts of consequences for people who had a different view on marriage.” Shelton said.
Shelton, who stood unsuccessfully to become a member of the senate with the Australian Conservatives, said there needed to be legal protections for people who did not want to change their view of marriage was.
“We ploughed ahead with the change to the definition of marriage based on the YES campaign saying there were no consequences, which I’m going to say tonight Derryn, it was a lie. it’s not true. There’s big complications and implications for people’s freedom of speech, and freedom of religion, and parent’s rights about gender fluid indoctrination in skills.” Shelton said.
Shelton said in both state and federal legislation anti-discrimination laws needed to be amended so people could not be called for authorities when they said something based on their religious beliefs which was deemed offensive by others.
Shelton said many Australians were sitting workplaces surrounded by colleagues wearing rainbow lanyards and were scared to share their true views on gender, marriage and sexuality.
Shelton rejected suggestions that some people from his side of politics were putting forward extreme propositions. Hinch highlighted that Mark Latham, One Nation’s NSW leader, had recently described “a reign of terror against Christians”.
“You might disagree with Mark Latham, and what he says has a hyperbolic nature to it, but it’s not far off the mark for many people.” Shelton said.
“There are people who sit in their workplaces, in government departments or in big corporations like QANTAS, surrounded by people with rainbow lanyards around their neck at work and all this rainbow stuff coming through the intranet, and they’re too scared to say ‘Hey. I’m actually someone who believes that marriage is between one man and one woman, I’m someone who thinks that gender is male and female and that’s it.”.
Shelton said these people faced the unfair prospect of being reprimanded in their workplaces or being forced to respond the anti-discrimination tribunals.
Shelton said the marriage result had been achieved through a process based on lies.
“I think people voted YES in that process based on lies. They were told my people like Alex Greenwich, and Christine Forster – Tony Abbott’s sister- Rodney Croome and Kerryn Phelps that there would be no consequences.”
Shelton said since the laws changed in 2017 Australians opposed to marriage equality had faced a wide range of consequences.
“The ink was hardly dry before Penny Wong went after Christian schools, and the freedom of schools to employ staff who share the beliefs of the parent community about marriage.” Shelton said.
The aspiring politician said people opposed to same-sex marriage had been unfairly characterised as “bigots and haters” throughout the campaign when they were really calling for tolerence.
OIP Staff
