Darwin has joined 37 other councils in supporting marriage equality. A room packed full of community members spoke in support of the vote, and helped to change minds on the night.
The vote got great coverage around the country. What happens now? Darwin City Council will have to action what they have signed up to:
That Council affirm its commitment to treat with dignity and respect all residents regardless of gender or sexuality.That Council write to all Northern Territory Senators, the Federal Members for Solomon and Lingiari and all Federal candidates to encourage them to:
i. Prioritise debating changes to the Marriage Act to achieve marriage equality for same sex couples
ii. Vote in favour of such changes
That Council affirm its commitment to treat with dignity and respect all residents regardless of gender or sexuality.That Council write to all Northern Territory Senators, the Federal Members for Solomon and Lingiari and all Federal candidates to encourage them to:
i. Prioritise debating changes to the Marriage Act to achieve marriage equality for same sex couples
ii. Vote in favour of such changes
That Council put a motion forward to the 2016 National General Assembly of Local Government asking them to support changes to the Marriage Act to achieve marriage equality for same sex couples.
Council should then publicly support the removal of any legislation that discriminates against members of our community: which the Marriage Act currently does.
Qnews, NT news, and the national campaign group Australian Marriage Equality