Armed with banners and a message, thousands took to the streets across Australia last month to march against the government’s same-sex marriage ban.
Hundreds of people converged on the steps of the Wesley Church in Perth’s city centre for the Freedom4Families rally.
In Melbourne, Sir Ian McKellen wowed the 4,000-strong crowd with his coming out story and told people why fighting for LGBT rights was so important to him.
The Stonewall co-founder and acclaimed actor said lifting the ban on gay marriage ‘would change lives enormously’.
‘Establishing the rights for gay people to be married would cost the Australian Government nothing financially and would gain …worldwide respect from people like us’ he said.
Over in Sydney, SameSame reported over 1,000 people attended the rally that made its way through Hyde Park and the streets of central Sydney.
Brisbane, Canberra, Adelaide and Wollongong also hosted rallies in a national stand against inequality.
F4F rally organiser Shane Bowra said the Perth action was a great success as hundreds of supporters marched through the Hall St Mall.
‘It’s about civil rights and human rights; there’s an inequality that exists for the LGBT community,’ Bowra said.
‘(The marriage ban) creates a situation where homophobia can flourish.’
Bowra said the response was great with participants adding to a boost in confidence for the cause.
‘The response from the general public was generally supportive; around 60 per cent of Australians support gay marriage,’ he said.
Check out the photos of the Perth, Sydney and Melbourne rallies at OUTinPerth.com
Benn Dorrington
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