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Liberal Democrat Junior Equality Minister Lynne Featherstone spoke recently at the Liberal Democrat conference in Liverpool, England and shared her thoughts on LGBT equality and why she thinks it is so long in coming in the UK government. Among the reasons for the inconsistencies: red tape and politics, pure and simple.
"[Equality] became a byword for bureaucracy and red-tape. [It is] less about liberation and more about frustration. And if ticking boxes and filling out forms led to equality, then Britain would be a utopia of fairness and optimism. She added, "We also recognize that transgender issues are often distinct and sometimes need to be addressed separately. That is why this government will be the first ever to produce an action plan on transgender equality."
Marriage equality was the main focus on the minds of the conference attendees in Liverpool. Featherstone told the press that she was “proud” of the motion to afford equal marriage rights to every citizen promised that the government was going to tackle ending homophobic laws in Britain. Included in her reference were homophobic bullying, protecting gay parents, and the use of Britain’s overseas influence to end homophobia in other nations around the world.
Former police officer Brian Paddick is an openly gay member of society in England and spoke at the Liberal Democrat conference as well. He painfully declared, “Yes, we have to be sensitive to religions and what they feel on this issue, and we are not talking necessarily about forcing religions to marry same-sex people in their synagogues and churches and temples. But there should be equality. If I want to marry my same-sex partner then I should be allowed to do that.”
Paddick legally married his partner in Oslo, Norway last year but the marriage was not recognized when the pair returned to their home in England. "My opinion changed on that day in Oslo. It had quite an impact on me when I stood in front of the judge in the court and she said, 'We are here to witness the marriage of Brian and Petter.' It powerfully struck me how significant and how important it was for us to be treated exactly the same as if we were a straight couple." Paddick added, "We are not treated the same in Britain as if I had married a woman on the same day last year. That isn't complete equality."
He went on to say, “What people often do not realize is that civil partnerships are not exactly the same as marriages. For instance, if I was to be survived by my Norwegian husband, he would only get two-fifths of my pension, rather than the half he would receive if we were regarded in this country as married.”
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