Australia – Wake Up

So far I’ve remained quiet on this whole “marriage” debate, or if I’m honest, just stuck my head in the sand because I just didn’t want to deal with all the negativity and hurt that this whole debate has brought out but I’m at a point now where I can’t keep reading all these comments and straight up lies and not say something. For those of you who don’t know my story, I went to a Christian school my entire life and was raised in a Christian home so needless to say I didn’t come out until I was 20 and even then didn’t “publicly” come out until I was almost 23. Now I’m truly blessed with a family that has always loved and accepted me for who I am and I am surrounded by friends who’s love and support has also never changed. My belief in God is also something that never changed. I have experienced too much in my life to deny his existence and I truly believe that this debate that is going on right now is breaking his heart. 

I want to start with the biggest lie coming from the “no” campaign and that is, that gay couples already have the same rights as a heterosexual married couple. It’s just simply not true. I could go on all day and list all the instances where equality does not exist but some of the biggest ones for me are;

If I had a partner and they were hospitalised in a critical condition I would not be able to see them as I’m not classed as “family” 

When it comes to adoption and surrogacy only one person can be listed as the legal parent of that child. This is a big one for me, especially as someone who wants children one day. Now yes in my will I can have it written that the child will continued to be cared for by my partner but what about situations where a family is not supportive of a person being gay and tries to contest the will and take that child away from its parent, because sadly it happens, and then it ends up in court and what happens if it’s a homophobic judge, which also sadly is a reality. Basically there is just too much being left to chance and this is a big reason why Marriage equality needs to happen. 

However what is breaking my heart the most is all the boys and girls out there right now who are struggling with their sexuality and all they are seeing on TV and social media is that they are not good enough and that there is something wrong with them. I can’t even begin to explain the daily struggle I went through when it came to accepting that who I am is okay and now on top of that there is all this hate and negativity to deal with, it just not right. If you are reading this and struggling right now, I need you to know that you are perfect and made in his image and God and so many others love you so much. Please don’t let the ignorance of a few that unfortunately have been given a platform to spread hate and malice get to you, they are simply not worth your tears. 

I truly hope Australia makes the right decision and I hope that this post has helped someone out there who is struggling right now with all this negativity. My inbox is always open should you ever need to chat about it, I know firsthand how lonely it can be, as I didn’t think I had anyone I could talk to about what I was feeling (I now know I did, but was just too scared of what people would think) so I’m here if you want to talk. 

Sending love and light,

Until next time,

Jared xx