JOINT STATEMENT: Mardi Gras Celebrations must be followed by real action
28 February, 2025
Joint statement from independent MPs Allegra Spender and Zali Steggall:
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is one of the highlights of the year and an incredible celebration of Australia’s LGBTIQ+ community.
We are so excited to join the march on Saturday evening as part of the ‘Independents for Inclusion’ float, standing alongside so many who champion equality, diversity, and respect.
Mardi Gras is a joyous occasion, but also an important reminder of the struggles that have been fought—and continue to be fought—by the LGBTIQ+ community.
The first Mardi Gras march in 1978 was met with police brutality and arrests. Today, while much progress has been made, the fight for equality is far from over.
This year, political leaders need to follow celebration with action.
True inclusion means ensuring that every Australian – regardless of their gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic – can live free from discrimination, exclusion, and harm.
Yet our federal laws do not provide for this.
Central to the fight for equality for our LGBTIQ+ community must be the repeal of section 38 of the Sex Discrimination Act, which allows religious educational institutions to discriminate against students and staff based on their sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or relationship status, or pregnancy.
No student should be expelled for being who they are. No teacher should lose their job because of their sexuality or their gender identity.
The 47th parliament has failed to show the courage that is needed to protect our LGBTIQ+ community. Every year that goes by without meaningful reform is another year in which LGBTIQ+ Australians are left vulnerable to discrimination. That must change.
The time for excuses is over.
This Mardi Gras, let’s not only celebrate how far we’ve come but recommit ourselves to the work still to be done. Our laws must reflect the values of fairness and inclusion that Australians hold dear.
The LGBTIQ+ community deserves nothing less.
Happy Mardi Gras to all celebrating.
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