Alex Greenwich Speaks Out About ‘Heartbreaking’ Decision To Strip Back LGBTIQA+ Equality Bill
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Independent MP Alex Greenwich has spoken out about the ongoing saga surrounding his LGBTIQA+ Equality Bill, explaining the devastating choice he had to make in stripping back the protections for LGBTQIA+ people that the bill originally intended to create.
Greenwich told media that he had to make a “heartbreaking decision” to remove key protections from the original Equality Legislation Amendment (LGBTIQA+) Bill 2023, to ensure urgent safety issues were put into place.
The changes mean that the protections for LGBTQIA+ teachers and students who work or study religious schools will now be dropped from the bill. This means that religious schools and other institutions can fire, expel, or refuse to work with LGBTQIA+ people based solely on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
“It’s heartbreaking that I’m in a position where I’m having to remove a reform that I have fought for my entire political career,” said Greenwich.
“There has been a concerted campaign, particularly by some religious organisations, and I’m not wanting to hold up some urgent reforms while we’re still working this through.”
But Greenwich also said that it’s far from over, and he will continue to fight for the parts of the bill that have been nixed.
“I am seeking to achieve the reforms that I can get support for now, to improve the safety and lives of LGBTQ people and continuing on all of the other items,” Greenwich said. “It’s not over.”
Seeing as the bill now has the support of NSW Premier Chris Minns and the Minns Labor Government, it is expected the legislation will be passed in the next two weeks.
What is actually still included in the LGBTIQA+ Equality Bill?
As it stands, the bill still includes protections for LGBTQIA+ victim-survivors of domestic violence, including the creation of a domestic violence offence for outing or threatening to out one’s partner.
It also still includes protections for transgender and gender-diverse people wanting to update their birth certificate without needing gender-affirming surgeries, as well as protections for intersex children being forced to have unnecessary medical interventions.
The bill also includes protections for LGBTQIA+ parents whose children are born in overseas surrogacy arrangements.
Equality Australia released a guide to the changes here:
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‘Progress over defeat’: Mixed responses to stripped back bill
There have been a variety of responses to the changes to the Equality Bill, from LGBTQIA+ groups, to unions, to religious groups.
NSW Rainbow Labor say that they support the bill in its current form because “we can’t afford to delay the bill any further”.
“Rainbow Labor has supported the bill since its introduction, which has broad support from our membership, and many NSW Labor MPs. Pressure around the bill has been building, and our membership has been campaigning for these reforms to be delivered by the end of October 2024.
“Changes in the bill will bring NSW in line with other States while dramatically improving the day to day lives of our community’s most vulnerable.
These are matters of identity, safety, and integrity and people’s lives depend on them.”
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The Independent Education Union of Australia, the union representing teachers and support staff in non-government schools, say they are deeply concerned about the protections being dropped.
“We are disappointed that Mr Greenwich did not consult the union representing the teachers and school staff who are impacted,” said Independent Education Union of Australia NSW/ACT Branch Secretary Carol Matthews. “Teachers, support staff and school leaders have shared heartbreaking stories with the IEU of the discrimination they’ve experienced in the workplace.”
Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown, said NSW had a chance to change its “archaic, cruel and discriminatory laws”, but the bill still does include very necessary protections for the LGBTQIA+ community.
“Although it’s deeply disappointing some reforms have been removed from the equality bill, it still contains vital measures that will improve the lives of people across NSW,” she said.
Protest and community action group Pride in Protest released a statement on social media, saying that the bill is “not the Equality Bill anymore”.
“Over 35 pages of reforms – including our safety at work – are being cut from the bill without community consultation. Any bill that leaves glaring exemptions for hate and discrimination, are simply not good enough,” said Dashie Prasad, Pride in Protest spokesperson. “This is not the Equality Bill anymore.”
Greenwich responded to Pride in Protest’s post on Instagram, saying he chose “progress over defeat”.
“The option was the entire bill gets voted down in its integrity, or I deliver 12 urgent reforms, including allowing people to update birth certificates without surgery. I chose progress over defeat, and have a commitment to pathways to achieve the rest,” reads Greenwich‘s comment.
“You can throw shade, I’ll get the reforms done 🏳️⚧️🏳️🌈”.
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