Media links: Equal marriage by 2017

Jersey Evening Post: Monday 1 December 2014

BBC Radio Jersey: Sunday 30 November 2014 (timecode: 01:04)

Pink News: Friday 28 November 2014

Jersey Evening Post: Wednesday 26 November 2014

Jersey Evening Post: Thursday 27 November 2014

Channel Television: Wednesday 26 November 2014

BBC Radio Jersey: Wednesday 26 November 2014 (timecode: 01:07)

BBC News: Wednesday 26 November 2014

Bailiwick Express: Thursday 27 November 2014

 

Results of equal marriage consultation

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Trans* Jersey and Liberate met with Chief Minister Ian Gorst on 21 November 2014 to discuss the findings of the consultation into the question of whether it is appropriate to introduce legislation to equalise marriage in Jersey.

Consultation results

The online survey conducted by the Chief Minister’s office had 1,094 respondents and 161 people wrote letters on the subject. This represents an amazing level of response and bears witness to strongly held opinions on both sides of the debate.

However, this only represents 1.5% of the population and, inevitably, only those members of the population who feel strongly about the subject. It was no surprise, therefore, to learn that 54% of respondents were for and 46% were against equal marriage. The closeness of the result is probably not representative of the population as a whole but speaks to the fact that about 10% of the population are LGBTQ and about 10% of the population are regular churchgoers, both parties being well mobilised and well versed in the arguments for and against.

Of the three options offered for making equal marriage a reality, the responses were as follows –

  • Civil marriage only – 34% for
  • Civil and religious marriage (with an opt-out for those whose faith does not allow for same-sex unions) – 55% for
  • Union Civile – 75% against

On the question of allowing humanist marriages to take place, 50% agreed that they should, but the lack of comments on this issue was interpreted to mean either a lack of understanding of the issue or a lack of real interest in seeing it happen.

On the question of opening up civil partnerships to opposite-sex couples, 75% were in favour. However, the comments from respondents indicated that this option was less about equality and more about greater legal protection for co-habiting couples.

On the question of parity of law for same-sex and opposite-sex couples where adultery is concerned, 65% were for equalising the law.

Of the options offered for equalising the law on adultery, the responses were as follows –

  • Removing adultery from law – 11%
  • Creating a new definition of adultery – 40%

This result spoke to concerns that fidelity is important within any marriage and that to remove adultery from law is to make fidelity appear less important.

In addition, a number of points came out of the consultation –

  • Marriage matters to everyone (whether you are for or against same-sex marriage).
  • Equality and non-discrimination is an important issue that respondents respected and did not want to stand accused of breaching.
  • From those people of faith, the message was that marriage can only be between a man and a woman.
  • There were also a number of people who felt that civil partnerships should be enough for same-sex couples.
  • Both sides agreed that civil partnerships are not the same as marriages.
  • For some “redefining” marriage to include same-sex marriages is not an option.
  • There were concerns surrounding the use of language if same-sex marriage were to happen, such as the neutralising genders on official documents. People from both sides were unhappy with words such as spouse1/spouse2 and would prefer husband/wife, wife/wife, husband/husband.
  • Both sides of the argument represent a minority of the population. This is, therefore, a minority issue.
  • The impact of same-sex marriage on children worried some respondents. However, research from other jurisdictions shows that there is no negative impact. This did raise the issue of changes to educational and family policy that will need to be looked at by the States. (For example, the automatic right of a mother to have responsibility for her children. At the moment, there is no automatic right for fathers.)
  • Some were concerned that same-sex marriage would promote homosexuality.
  • The cost of implementing the legislation is not inconsiderable and, it was felt, needed to be weighed against the number of beneficiaries. At the last census, 0.4% of the population are living together in a same-sex relationship. (Note: this is not the same as the percentage of the population that is LGBTQ.)
  • The estimate of the number of equal marriages that will be held following the introduction of a new law is 44. This is similar to the uptake of civil partnerships following their introduction.

The proposal

Based on his findings, the Chief Minister will be bringing forward the following proposal for legislation –

  • Civil and religious marriage for same-sex couples with an opt-in clause for religious groups and their clergy. This will preserve terms such as husband and wife. It will also include something similar to the “quadruple lock” that protects religious organisations from prosecution under anti-discrimination legislation and is included in the England and Wales legislation for same-sex marriage.
  • Civil partnerships will be able to seamlessly convert to marriages. This can happen with or without a marriage ceremony as the couple chooses. Marriages will not be allowed to convert to civil partnerships, however, as this has proved unhelpful in other jurisdictions where it has been used to facilitate divorces.
  • Humanist marriage will not be brought in.
  • There will be no so-called “spousal veto” where, in England and Wales, a person in a marriage transitions and their spouse can prevent them from applying for a gender recognition certificate (in order to stop the marriage becoming a same-sex marriage). Jersey will seek to follow Scottish law on this point.
  • Civil partnerships will not be extended to opposite-sex couples and will be gradually phased out, if possible, because they are seen by the majority of people as a “second-tier” of marriage. More work will be done to find ways to provide more rights to co-habiting couples. If civil partnerships cannot be phased out, the decision will be revisited and the Chief Minister will seek to bring in civil partnerships for opposite-sex couples.
  • On the question of equalising adultery in the law, the Chief Minister will not be seeking to remove it from law as it is clear that sexual fidelity in marriage matters to people. He will be exploring the option of “no fault” divorces, the ability of a couple to apply jointly for a divorce (rather than one party bringing an action against the other) and the legal requirement for a divorcing couple to have mediation first. All options are being investigated with the intent of taking some of the acrimony out of divorce.

Timetable

The Chief Minister will report his findings to the States Chamber on 26 November 2014. The proposition will be brought in the first quarter of 2015 with a request for the States to approve the time frame and the process of legal change. Because there are extensive amendments that need to be made to other laws, a clear order of progress is required. (For example, within taxation law, a couple in a civil partnership can elect which partner is treated as the main taxpayer but, for a married couple, it is always the husband who is automatically the main taxpayer. This is clearly inequitable and needs amending.)

It is anticipated that Jersey will have same-sex marriage by the end of 2017.

You can download the full report on the consultation here.

A week of contradictions

On Tuesday 8 July 2014, the States of Jersey approved an amendment by Senator Ian le Marquand to the proposition to allow same-sex marriage that had been brought by Deputy Sam Mezec. The amendment effectively stalled the progress towards equal marriage in Jersey by making it subject to a consultation by the Chief Minister, Senator Ian Gorst. Apparently, many of those who voted for the amendment did so because of the immoderate language being used by supporters of the original bill. The words “homophobia” and “homophobic” were used on more than one occasion to describe others with opposing views.

On the very same day, Trans* Jersey received two emails from trans* islanders, independently, reporting that they had been the victims of abuse and assault. In both cases, they were physically at risk of injury. In both cases, the attacks were simply because the victims were trans*. As you can imagine, Tuesday was not a good day for Trans* Jersey.

However, the two reports put the States’ debate into perspective and meant that we did not vent our disappointment over the States’ decision by calling-out politicians on Facebook or Twitter as some did. Apart from acknowledging that there might have been any number of reasons why a States’ member voted against same-sex marriage, such as feeling ill-prepared for the debate, there is another reason why we should be moderate in our response to setbacks in the struggle for equal marriage.

Nobody in the States’ chamber on Tuesday was homophobic. Those who have been the victims of homophobia, transphobia or biphobia know it when they see it. *Phobia isn’t an off-colour joke or a misuse of a pronoun or a disagreement over equal marriage. It is a deep-seated hatred of LGBT people that makes a person capable of acts of verbal or physical cruelty to the target of his or her hate. Until you have been the victim of a hate crime, you cannot know *phobia. There is something in the eyes, something in the tone of voice, that LGBT people recognise as *phobic. It’s when the adrenalin starts pumping and the body goes into fight or flight mode.

When a white, heterosexual, male calls people who don’t share his political view on same-sex marriage “homophobic”, he needs to be very careful. Overuse and misuse of any word can remove its power. Homophobia, transphobia and biphobia are important words to the LGBT community for they are they only way we have of describing the most heinous of crimes against us. These words must not be cheapened by those who are unlikely ever to be the target of a homophobic, transphobic or biphobic attack.

Trans* Jersey would like to say to our allies: thank you for your support, thank you for fighting for equality for us, thank you for being allies, but please be careful of the language that you use when you speak on our behalf.

rallykingstreetAnd then, on Saturday 12 July 2014, this happened. Estimates of the number of people who turned out vary but there were certainly hundreds, possibly 1,000 people there. King Street was filled with love, pride and lots of rainbows for what was Jersey’s first ever LGBTQ rights march or equality rally or pride parade. In the end, nobody was sure what it was and, actually, it didn’t seem to matter. We were there to show that we exist. Every human population has an LGBT community. Visible or forced underground, it is there. Our detractors conveniently forget that fact but, sometimes, we do too and when we do, even an island of 9 miles by 5 miles where “everyone knows everyone”, can seem like a lonely place. Saturday was about reminding ourselves that we aren’t alone, that there are others like us, others who also share our desire for equality.

Rallies often don’t accomplish much but this one felt different. This one felt like a moment of change. Maybe because, during the week, the feelings of anger towards the States for their decision dissipated and were replaced with a feeling of solidarity. Trans* Jersey thanks the organisers of Saturday’s event for being the catalyst that brought us all together in Liberation Square. Every LGBT person in Jersey now knows, for sure, that there is a community here to which they belong and who will stand up for their beliefs in a fair and equal society.

Open letter to all States of Jersey members from Liberate

This is the full version of Liberate‘s excellent letter to all members of the States of Jersey on the subject of Deputy Sam Mézec’s proposition:

I write on behalf of LIBERATE in support of Deputy Sam Mézec’s proposition lodged at the States Greffe on Wednesday 28 May 2014 petitioning the States of Jersey to introduce equal marriage in the Bailiwick of Jersey.

LIBERATE is the first Channel Island charity to support the islands’ Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Community (LGBTQ).

Who we are

Liberate is an inclusive Group, which welcomes people irrespective of sexual orientation, gender identity, religious belief, race, gender or disability. We are a local charity and were founded on 15 February 2014 in Guernsey.

Liberate is made up of a virtual rainbow of people from every different gender and sexual identity you could possibly think of. With such a diverse background we can operate on many different levels as we all bring something different to the group.

Our vision

Our vision is simple. We believe in a Fair & Equal society, where everyone is born equal and free, and treated with dignity and respect no matter what their gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, belief or race.

Article 1 of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights states: “All people are born free & equal in dignity and rights”.

Children do not know racism, sexism, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, unless they are taught it and government has a responsibility to ensure that it sends a clear message to communities that discrimination in all its forms is not acceptable.

Our purpose

The purpose of Liberate is to educate and inform on a wide range of issues and to support those who identify as LGBTQ, their families and friends.

We campaign to reform some of Guernsey’s policies and laws to ensure that LGBTQ people can enjoy the same freedoms as everyone else in the Bailiwick of Guernsey. We also lend our support to the LGBTQ community in Jersey and are affiliated to Trans*Jersey.

We question social attitudes and behaviours which discriminate against LGBTQ people, and offer advice and help in tackling homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, etc.

Our aims

We will petition and work with government to:

  1. Introduce Equal Marriage Legislation
  2. Give transgender people full access to services to allow them to transition to their gender identity
  3. Introduce anti-discriminatory legislation or an Equality Act which addresses homophobic, biphobic and transphobic hate crime
  4. Reform laws and policies such as income tax legislation to ensure that they are non-discriminatory

Since our website www.liberate.gg was launched we have had over 1,000 signatures in support of equal marriage in the islands. We have also achieved one of our aims in Guernsey of having transgender reassignment surgery funded by the States of Guernsey. We also:

  • Support the local Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning community, their families, friends and carers through a wide range of initiatives.
  • Educate and inform society through outreach and Public Awareness campaigns.
  • Fight to ensure that everyone is treated fairly and equally under the law, and that no-one is left behind.
  • Challenge discrimination in all its forms in our daily lives, whether it is working in a voluntary capacity for Liberate, at work, socially, etc. We will not be bystanders.
  • Act as Ambassadors for Equality and Diversity in our daily lives.
  • Work with other organisations, charities and non-governmental organisations to promote equality and fairness in our society and facilitate positive change in social policy.
  • Respect the dignity and rights of others at all times, whether we have differences of opinion or belief, or not.

The Free & Equal Campaign

The United Nations Human Rights Commission recently launched its Free & Equal Campaign which is partly aimed at world governments to ensure that they do not actively discriminate through legislation and policy, as well as encouraging the LGBTQ community to speak out and have a voice.

The LGBTQ community have historically been persecuted, tortured and executed[1]. Indeed 81 countries still classify homosexuality as a criminal offence. It is only in recent history that it was decriminalised in our society, and not until the early 1990’s that the World Health Organisation declassified homosexuality as a disease. We hope that you can therefore appreciate how difficult it is for the LGBTQ community to be visible and speak out against social injustice.

Deputy Mézec’s Proposition

Deputy Mézec’s proposition is an important step for Jersey in ensuring that each and every one of its citizens are free and equal in dignity and rights.

Jersey recently made an important step in terms of tackling discrimination with the introduction of its Discrimination Law. We see the introduction of equal marriage in Jersey as a natural progressive step towards that goal. Failure to do so will deny approximately 10% of the population the right to marry, and be totally at odds with Jersey’s current social policy in terms of discrimination.

Guernsey’s Chief Minister has already assured LIBERATE that he will bring a report to the States of Guernsey before the end of this political term proposing the introduction of a Union Civile for all couples who wish to marry. Under the proposed law, it will be the choice of those getting married whether they chose to then have a blessing or humanist celebration.

We hope Jersey does the same.

The England and Wales Equal Marriage Act caused problems for transgender people over the so-called Spousal Veto. It allows their spouse to refuse to permit them to have a Gender Reassignment Certificate, which would convert the marriage from opposite-sex to same-sex.  We prefer the Scottish Same Sex Marriage Law of 2014 model which overcomes that “veto”.

Winning Hearts and Minds

LIBERATE acknowledges that changing laws and policies is only part of the solution to changing societal attitudes towards the LGBTQ community.

Together we must win the hearts and minds of those who through ignorance, intolerance, and hatred, discriminate against various sections of our community. It is that intolerance which can divide families, friends and colleagues, and damage the very fabric of our society, with consequential harm to individuals and cost to government and other third party agencies. The LGBTQ community is widely acknowledged to be twice at risk of harm of anxiety, depression, substance misuse, self harm and suicide because of the affects that prejudicial attitudes have.

Changing laws and policies sends out a very clear signal to society of what is acceptable and what behaviours are not.

Our commitment to the States of Jersey is that we will work and co-operate with government locally in terms of ensuring that the universal principle of fairness and equality for all applies within our islands. Whether it be in changing laws and policies, or helping States departments in developing social policy strategies which promote equality and inclusion and celebrate the importance of diversity.

We ask you to vote “Pour” in favour of Deputy Mézec’s proposition.

Yours faithfully
Martin Gavet
Hon. Chairperson
LIBERATE

[1] Including an estimated 100,000 LGBTQ people who were victims of the Nazi Holocaust.

 

The JEP report from Tuesday 17 June 2014:

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Really equal marriage: the Union Civile

This week Guernsey moved a step closer to equal marriage with a clever proposal for a Union Civile law that would remove religion from laws related to marriage. You can read more about the story here or visit Liberate’s website for more information about the work they have been doing.

ringsThe proposed law would mean that all those who wanted to marry would do so in a civil ceremony. Thus, in one bold stroke, all marriages between two people, irrespective of their sex or gender, would be equal in Guernsey. The ability to legally marry a couple would be removed from religious organisations, which would also remove the knotty question for people of faith as to whether their church should “allow” same-sex marriage.

Under the proposal, there would be nothing to stop a couple celebrating their wedding through a religious service after they had legally tied the knot civilly. Under current EU legislation, there is no means by which a religious organisation could be forced to offer a celebratory service to a same-sex couple if it is against their religious beliefs. This should satisfy the churches that the legislation does not stop them from celebrating marriages as they understand them in the way that they wish.

Trans* Jersey stated that we would be in favour of adopting the Scottish model for same-sex marriage legislation, but this new development from Guernsey is even better. It does away with the UK system of two laws, one for opposite-sex couples and one for same-sex couples, in favour of one law for everyone.

We are in favour of adopting Guernsey’s proposal here in Jersey as it would solve the problem that trans people have when they transition within a marriage. Under Guernsey’s proposal, the marriage stays intact and the transition has no effect on its status. This also resolves the problem, perceived by some, that a person’s transition alters or diminishes the partnership somehow. Under this proposal, there is no alteration of the partnership and, therefore, the spouse has no reason to require a veto to stop their partner’s transition.

Deputy Sam Mezec lodged a proposition with the States of Jersey this week to debate same-sex marriage in July. We will have to wait for more news on what Jersey’s proposed legislation will look like, but Trans* Jersey hopes that it will resemble Guernsey’s forward-thinking and elegantly simple proposal.

Consortium membership

Trans* Jersey is very pleased to be able to announce that, as of today, we are members of Consortium. This will provide us with access to loads of resources for our members and other groups doing similar work in the UK.

Consortium is a national membership organisation focusing on the development and support of LGBT groups, projects and organisations; so they can deliver direct services and campaign for individual rights. They are mandated by their Membership to focus on the following areas:

SHARE: To collect a wide range of information relevant to the LGBT sectors and share it widely

  • Build and maintain a national website in partnership with the sector
  • Create and update a database of LGBT organisations and their activities
  • Coordinate the production of a State of the Sector report annually

SUPPORT: Link the sector together

  • Host events such as national LGBT conferences with time for Members to discuss their own needs
  • Create and support specialist networks
  • Help Members to form partnerships to work together on particular projects
  • Capacity building work focused on addressing identified sector gaps with small organisations

SHOUT: Be a voice for the LGBT sector

  • Be one of the voices for LGBT sector representation to highlight its needs
  • Coordinate Member organisations to provide the voice for LGBT people
  • Including setting up of a Members’ Council

STORE: Lead work with LGBT organisations to develop a shared vision for the whole sector

  • Be a repository for good practice
  • Supporting the standardisation of research across the sector to build a better national picture of LGBT needs and experiences

Recently, Consortium delivered the Trans Manifesto to the UK government. Trans* Jersey wholeheartedly supports the aims of the document. It is an important step and one we need to monitor in the island because, should its demands come to fruition, it will have repercussions for trans* individuals in Jersey, too. You can read more about it here.

Click Consortium’s logo below to find out more about who they are and what they do.Consortium_logo

Liberate-Trans* Jersey affiliation

Trans* Jersey is very pleased to be able to announce that, as of today, we are affiliated to Liberate and are working with them on various issues, including their campaign to achieve equal marriage. Although Liberate are based in Guernsey and we are based in Jersey, both groups are of the opinion that our common aims make working together a sensible strategy to achieving legislative change in the islands.

Liberate is a Guernsey registered charity established in 2014 to include, inform and support the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (LGBTQ) community in the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Liberate’s aims are as follows:

  • The purpose of Liberate is to educate and Inform on a wide range of LGBTQ issues and to support those who identify as LGBTQ, their families and friends.
  • We will campaign to reform some of Guernsey’s policies to ensure that LGBTQ people can enjoy the same freedoms as everyone else in the Bailiwick of Guernsey.
  • We are hoping to question social attitudes and behaviours which discriminate against LGBTQ people, and offer advice and help in tackling homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, etc.
  • We will challenge the States of Guernsey and politicians on a wide range of current discriminatory laws and policies, to ensure that LGBTQ people will, one day, be treated equally.
  • Liberate is an inclusive Group, which welcomes people irrespective of or sexual orientation, gender identity, religious belief,race, gender or disability.

Liberate are currently campaigning to petition the chief ministers in Jersey and Guernsey to “End LGBTQ discrimination in the Channel Islands NOW!”. If you have not yet signed their petition, you can do so here.

Click Liberate’s logo below to find out more about who they are and what they do.

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Equal marriage support

Trans* Jersey supports Deputy Sam Mezec’s call for the States of Jersey to pass legislation to legalise same-sex marriage. Trans* Jersey goes further and would support a move for the island to model its law on Scotland’s equal marriage legislation.

We support equal marriage because, as the law currently stands in Jersey, a transman or transwoman in a marriage or civil partnership and wishing to legally transition (by acquiring a gender recognition certificate (“GRC”)) must first obtain a divorce from their spouse. Divorce and re-marriage (via a civil partnership or marriage, depending on which way you are going!) carries with it not just costs but implications for the continuation of legal documents, such as wills, and pension provisions.

This is the only known example where the law requires someone to forgo one right (the right to remain married to their partner) in order to access another (the right to private life afforded by the Gender Recognition Act). This anomaly has led to some transsexual people in the UK deciding not to acquire a GRC, as they argue their marriage vows were for life and they object to the idea that their partner (by remaining with them and true to those vows) would be unfairly treated by dissolving the original bond.

When Scotland was considering equal marriage legislation, James Morton of the Equality Network and Scottish Transgender Alliance released this video explaining why equal marriage matters to trans and intersex people. Trans* Jersey agrees with the points he made.

When England introduced the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, they got it wrong. They included what has come to be called the Spousal Veto, a clause that allows spouses of transgender people to effectively stop them from legally transitioning (i.e. acquiring a GRC). Sarah Brown, the LibDem politician and trans* activist, explains why this is a problem here.

When Scotland passed its legislation, the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2014, they got it right. They removed the need for transgender people to dissolve their marriage before be able to acquire a GRC; they have enabled people to have gender-neutral marriage ceremonies; and they secured the removal of the spousal veto.

An explanation from the Equality Network on what Scotland’s recently passed equal marriage bill will mean for trans and intersex people.

The Equality Network is a Scottish lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) equality charity: http://www.equality-network.org