Australia's LGBT Community: Social Progress and Personal Reflections

This essay explores the evolution of the LGBT community in Australia from 1968 to the present, examining the social and legal changes that have occurred over the past 50 years. It highlights the formation of early LGBT rights organizations, key events like the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, and legal battles surrounding issues like same-sex marriage and adoption. The essay also includes a personal reflection on growing up gay in Australia, detailing experiences with discrimination, eventual acceptance, and the importance of family support. The conclusion emphasizes the ongoing progress towards universal acceptance and the significance of respecting human rights for social and economic development. Desklib provides access to this essay and many other resources for students.

Running Head: LGBT COMMUNITY FROM 1968 TO PRESENT 1
LGBT COMMUNITY
Name
Institutional Affiliation

LGBT COMMUNITY FROM 1968 TO PRESENT 2
LGBT Community from 1968 to Present
Introduction
Ancient civilizations around the world have recorded numerous instances of same-sex
love and sexuality entailing the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.
Indigenous Australians were not an exception to cases of same-sex relations which erupted in the
18th and 19th centuries. Australian laws on LGBT were based on Britain laws in which lesbianism
was never illegal but sodomy was severely punished. The LGBT community’s rights in Australia
were therefore not organized until in the late 1960s when organizations such as the ACT
Homosexual Law Reform Society and DaughtersofBilitis were formed (Lamond, 2018).
What Changed
It was the Campaign Against Moral Persecution (C.A.M.P.) which brought real change in
Australia regarding the LGBT people. This organization carried out their first demonstration in
1971 outside the Liberal Party headquarters in Sydney seeking a reform in homosexual laws.
Other gay rights organizations were formed during this period, the largest of which was Society
Five, a gay association based in Melbourne. Following the founding of these various gay rights
groups, the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras was formed by copious people matching down
George Street in Sydney. This event is celebrated annually since then. As a result of these
reformations, gayism, which was earlier on viewed as a disorder was removed by the Australian
Medical Association from its list of illnesses and disorders in 1973(Rosenmann et al, 2016).
Regardless of the seemingly general acceptance of gayism and lesbianism, some people
even in leadership positions such as Prime Minister John Howard would not come to terms with
homosexuality prevalence in Australia. Additionally, he refused to support the aforementioned

LGBT COMMUNITY FROM 1968 TO PRESENT 3
celebration adding that he would be disappointed if any of his kids announced that they were
homosexual. In 2003, the Australian government was so prissy towards the LGBT community
that even attempts of the UN Human Rights Commission to create equality for this community’s
rights in Australia were futile. In 2004, the Marriage Act 1961 was amended prohibiting
marriage between homosexual couples. During the same year, gay adoption was also declared
illegal by John Howard. Despite the government rejection of gay rights around this period,
specific states such as Victoria were making steps towards same-sex equality by passing of non-
discriminatory laws ((Lamond, 2018).
By 2010, more people acknowledged the LGBT community leading to the adjustment of
the legal system as well ((D’Alton, 2016). In 2016, for instance, Queensland amended the age of
consent laws which led to expungement in most of the Australian states and abstraction of
conviction records of people previously charged with anti-homosexual laws.
Growing Up Gay in Australia
Growing up with the knowledge that I am gay in Sydney, Australia was not the best
experience or feeling. There were so much discrimination and wrong perception of the LGBT
community during that time. This acumen was made worse by numerous arrests and entrapment
of the gay people, often without a valid reason for carrying out these apprehensions. The school
was not any different from the streets in regards to homosexuality views. There was phobia all
over which caused little to no discussions on this issue in schools. Since the 1970s, however,
things have changed and people have become more acquiescent and appreciating of homosexuals
with an awareness and understanding that they are not different (Clarke, 2010). I have also learnt
that the acuity of homosexuality is different n differing schools depending on each institution’s
leadership. Teachers associations have also tried to accommodate students irrespective of their

LGBT COMMUNITY FROM 1968 TO PRESENT 4
sexual orientations (Koh et al, 2014). Conversely, this is not the case in private and religious
schools as they have their own rules and regulations.
My family members, I included were austere Christians who attended Catholic Church,
still does. Our beliefs kept us together as a family, surrounded by endless love. Somehow, even
amidst all this love, I was never confident enough to share with my family about my sexuality for
fear of their reaction and maybe change of feelings towards me. Even my mother, to whom I was
very close to did not find out about my sexual orientation until later on when she was very sick
and on the point of death. I think I just could not let her pass on without a full knowledge of who
her son really is. Amazingly, my mother took the news very well, surprising me with the fact that
she already knew and was just waiting for me to come clean to her. From then on, my whole
family found out and they all were happy that finally, I was not only able to accept myself for
who I really am but also that I was honest with them (Savin-Williams, 2009).
During my teenage years, I was pretty lonely due to the dread of encounters with the
police. Many other people were probably but had no intimacy as a result of the same distress
(Hammack & Cohler, 2009). The situation was better when I discovered comparatively few gay
spots that had sprung up. I later realized that I did not have to fear in these places as they had
been running for years. I even spotted certain great individuals around these venues sometimes.
This was the time I became psychologically ready to meet someone and actually have a
meaningful relationship for the first time in my life.
Looking back on my life I would have made a different decision in relation to my family.
I comprehend now that I should have had enough confidence in my family’s love for me and the
courage to show them who I really am. Moreover, I ought to have fully accepted who I was in
my heart and loved myself more.

LGBT COMMUNITY FROM 1968 TO PRESENT 5
The future of the LGBT Community
The probable future of the LGBT community is universal approval and acknowledgment
(D’Alton, 2016). Marriage between this group of people has been recognized in only a few
countries so far, but the future holds more hope for this community. Their acceptance is
becoming widespread and years go by since more people are realizing the importance of freedom
and respect of human rights which is crucial for any nation’s development, both socially and
economically (Bernstein, 2018).

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References
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