Same-Sex Marriage Splits Australia
- Nationwide postal survey on marriage equality starts Tuesday
- Turnbull criticized for refusing direct vote in parliament
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Trent Gardiner hopes to marry his partner Lochie this year if Australians support legalizing same-sex unions in a postal vote. The school teacher fears he will first face a wave of bigotry as the two-month ballot beginning Tuesday divides the nation.
“There’s always an anti-gay element in society but it isn’t usually given a platform to be vocalized,” said Gardiner, 39, whose car was among eight whose tires were slashed last month outside a Sydney theater showing a gay-themed play. “It’s quite insulting to me that the government is asking the Australian population whether I should be allowed my basic human right to get married.”