ࡱ> /10` bbjbjss . bJJJJJJJ$F F F F R  j j j j j j j j k m m m m m m $h* J j j JJj j 3 3 3 "Jj Jj k 3 k 3 3 JJ3 j ^ ލF "3 k 0 3  3 J3 8j L 63 , j j j ) j j j DD^$JJJJJJ Darren Caffrey [Details removed] To whom it may concern. Im sure my story is indicative of many like me. I am a homosexual man and I personally feel discriminated against by the people that are supposed to represent me and the country that I live in, Australia, the Lucky country. In 1981 I was 12 years old and starting my first year of High School in Engadine, the southern Suburbs of Sydney in the Sutherland Shire. I met a boy with whom I fell hopelessly in love with, developed a friendship with him and that developed in to my first relationship as we discovered we shared similar feelings for each other. For months we were inseparable, until our relationship was discovered and broadcast across my High School community. He was lucky. He absolved himself of sin in the Christian faith. I, however, did not feel that I had committed a sin, and as a result was victimised and relentlessly targeted by homophobic bullying and made to feel so ashamed of myself and unable to reach out to anyone for help and/or support. By 1983, so fearful of what was to come when I arrived at school, I was very rarely there, resulting in failing my School Leavers Certificate at the end of 1984. Homophobia and bullying had become such a large factor in my life that at the time when I should be socialising, I was becoming reclusive. I have never made an issue of my sexuality, it has always been others that have made an issue of my sexuality, and how dare people do that to me. How dare they force me to defend my rights because I am gay. At no point in my life can I remember choosing to be gay. The way I feel about my sexuality invalidates the thoughts that sexuality is chosen, a preference or even a lifestyle. In fact, my memories today of when I was 8 years old and wishing that certain boys in my class were my brother were my first indicators that I am same-gender attracted, gay. How could I choose my sexuality at 8 years old when I didnt even know what sex was, and only knew the love of a mother, father and sibling? In the last decade I have come to accept my sexuality rather than hide from it and recluse from society. I came out to family and friends in 2000 when I was 31 years old. I have an amazing network of friends and family that love and support me, but I have a government system that discriminates against me, I have legislation that allows me to be legally discriminated against, I have legislation that doesnt afford me the civil rights that are afforded exclusively to heterosexual couples. I sit here and watch countries like the UK, Canada, New Zealand, Belgium, The Netherlands, South Africa, Ireland, Scotland, just to name a few, move forward in protecting same-gender couples and ensuring that they are afforded legal recognition within their relationships, but sadly in Australia we are regressing and I cant help but feel hopeless and disheartened as I watch gays and lesbian from these countries embrace their rights. Gays and Lesbians should not be unprotected in their relationships just because they are gay or lesbian, but that is what is happening in Australia. I dream of the day that Australian gays and lesbians can formalize their relationships and be afforded the same civil rights that are afforded heterosexuals in relationships and marriage. This cannot happen when the leadership of the country does appear so homophobic that he and his government move to quash same-sex civil unions in the ACT, and then in the same breath declare the move to not be homophobic. I think their actions are contradicting their statements. I think this Australian Federal Leadership lead by John Howard are too aggressive with their beliefs and are not listening to what Australia has to say, for I am confident that if a leader WAS listening to their constituents, they would be hearing a majority of heterosexuals saying Denying same-gender couples Relationship rights and Civil Unions is discriminatory.. If the Federal Leadership WAS listening, they would hear that their constituents are NOT against same-sex unions. At this point I would like to thank you for reading my letter. I hope that it will invoke thought and discussion amongst you and your family, friends, associates and organizations that you are involved with. I hope that I can marry the man of my dreams some day, and provide for him and ensure that he is not left wanting in the event that I should pass. Kind Regards Darren Caffrey.  !9abh}/hK> hK> 5B*CJ$KH$OJQJ\aJ$ph8[hpB*OJQJphhK> hK> B*OJQJph!9  f)DQab $@&a$gdK> gdK> b,1h. A!"#$% @@@ NormalCJ_HaJmH sH tH \@\ K> Heading 1dd@&[$\$5B* CJ0KH$\aJ0ph@DAD Default Paragraph FontRiR  Table Normal4 l4a (k(No ListH@H p Balloon TextCJOJQJ^JaJb  "& "& b`!9f ) DQadr r r r  r r r r r r r r r r r r r r !9f ) DQad0000v0v0v0v0v0v0v0v0v0v0v0v0v0v0v!9f ) DQad@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@0@00b bb뺠? 캠 ﺠLd  dl' ' d9*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsplaceB*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagscountry-region @jX_d=Dd:: addK> w5][CnO5{}Hp@Xbp@UnknownGz Times New Roman5Symbol3& z ArialWCalibriTimes New RomanWCambriaTimes New Roman5& zaTahoma"qh::T?T?24dNN2P)?K> 2Oh+'0d   , 8DLT\ Normal.dot4Microsoft Office Word@F#@@T՜.+,0 px  ?N  Title  !#$%&'(),Root Entry FO.1TableWordDocument. SummaryInformation(DocumentSummaryInformation8"CompObjq  FMicrosoft Office Word Document MSWordDocWord.Document.89qRoot Entry F^+Š31TableWordDocument. 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