Equal Marriage Rites

I’ve been with my partner for 15 years, we can’t be legally married because we’re not heterosexual.

To be an Authorised Civil Marriage Celebrant in Australia, I must prove that I am an upstanding member of my community by a rigorous process of referee checks, yet I can’t marry.

My wedding clients hate these words “Marriage, according to law in Australia, is the union of a man and a woman”, but by law I must say them.

I believe we should change these words to ‘Marriage, according to law in Australia, is the union of a consenting adult couple’ and I urge the Federal government to make it legal for me to marry.

On Saturday 19th March 2011, I celebrated a civil wedding ceremony as it should be celebrated, a ceremony where a same-sex couple can also be married. I did this as part of the Rally for Equal Marriage Rites that were held all over Australia, here's the video....

You can find the transcript of the ceremony on the Offbeat Ceremonies website.