YOUNG Tamworth couple Sarah Mayo and Lucy McCowen are married in their eyes, but not in the eyes of the law.
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That may be set to change, with a cross-party bill on same-sex marriage to be introduced on August 11 and discussed in the Liberal party room on August 18, it was announced yesterday.
The Leader last caught up with Sarah and Lucy in 2013, on the cusp of a possible law change for NSW that would have seen their love recognised as equal to that of heterosexual couples.
They went ahead with a wedding and commitment ceremony in March last year, but do still not have the same legal rights and still cannot call each other “wife”.
Now, they have been buoyed by international moves to legalise same-sex marriage and the groundswell of support for change.
The US Supreme Court’s landmark ruling to legalise gay marriage in all 50 states was met with a flurry of rainbow filters on Facebook, with 26 million people altering their profile pictures in solidarity with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.
The pair said they found the shows of support “overwhelming” and “comforting”.
“It was awesome. It shows how much support you have,” Lucy said.
“It’s not just lesbians and gays, it’s straight people that support us.”
Sarah agreed, saying it made her feel less isolated and more accepted.
“You don’t feel so alone anymore,” she said.
“Discrimination is definitely still out there and having marriage equality won’t fix it, but it’s definitely a step forward.
“It’s not about the wedding day, it’s about legal rights – having each other as legal partners.
“My hopes for the near future are that there will be acceptance, not just tolerance.”
Sarah said the building momentum gave her high hopes equal marriage would finally be legalised.
“The government has to start listening to society and open their eyes,” Sarah said.
“I wish they would get it over and done with.”
She said the debate was taking up a lot of time and space, and issues like LGBT workplace discrimination and mental health needed attention – but might also be eased if marriage was legalised.
The couple considered flying to New Zealand to get an official marriage certificate, but decided there was no point as they would be stripped of their marital status on their return.
Besides, they believed they shouldn’t have to leave their home country to get married.
The bill is expected to bring the bubbling equal marriage debate to a head.
It has been co-sponsored by Liberal Party members Warren Entsch and Teresa Gambaro, Labor’s Laurie Ferguson and Terri Butler, and independents Cathy McGowan and Andrew Wilkie.