Religious Discrimination Act: What are the proposed changes for LGBTQI students?

Описание: Religious schools and LGBTQI students are again at the center of the federal political debate. Fair enough if it looks like Groundhog Day. What are the proposed changes and why is there so much debate about trans kids?

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Save login, registration or subscription to save articles for later use. Normal text size Large text size Very large text size Religious schools and LGBTQI students are again at the center of the federal political debate. If this looks like Groundhog Day, that's fair enough: Since same-sex marriage was legalized in 2017, there's been talk of legal reform in the area. There is now a federal proposal to prevent religious schools from expelling students for being gay. It sounds simple, but it turns out it's not. What is the proposed change and why is there so much debate? Credit: What does the law currently say? Religious schools enjoy broad immunity from anti-discrimination laws. Specifically, the Sex Discrimination Act states that it is not illegal for a religious educational institution to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or relationship status, or pregnancy—as long as the discrimination is “in good faith” in order to avoid harm The religious sensitivities of adherents of that religion or creed”. The provision is contained in section 38 of the Act. The last change was in 2013 when the then Labour government overhauled anti-discrimination laws to protect people from marital status and pregnancy, as well as sexual orientation and gender identity. Exemptions for religious educational establishments have been changed to include these attributes.

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What is the government's proposal now? The proposed amendment would not remove the above exemption. Instead, it would add a warning: "It is illegal for a person to expel a student on the grounds of their sexual orientation," despite what the section says. So, in short, a religious school can no longer expel students for being gay or bisexual. They can still expel transgender students, and all LGBTQI students may still face discrimination in addition to expulsion. Why is it controversial? The change itself was not controversial - almost everyone, including the Australian Christian Lobby, agreed that schools should not expel students for being gay. The debate is about all things that won't change, and in fact it makes a stark difference in the way discrimination laws apply to gay and trans students.

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On Wednesday morning Liberal MP Dave Sharma drew attention to these concerns, saying: "We need to remember that students can easily be forced out of school without being expelled. If they are harassed, intimidated, bullied or feel unwelcome or It’s not safe, of course they will leave.” Why would the government do this? Coalition governments have a long and complex history in this area of ​​law. Malcolm Turnbull's Philip Ruddock scrutiny of religious freedom to legalise same-sex marriage has drawn attention to the exemptions religious schools enjoy. The review, completed in 2018, recommended retaining but adjusting these exemptions. In the ensuing debate, then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he did not support students being expelled because of their sexual orientation, and vowed to change the law. But disagreements over how far the changes should go — similar to the arguments this week — led to those plans being scrapped at the end of 2018. The government has asked the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) to examine wider issues of discrimination against LGBTQI students and teachers and submit a brief by the end of 2019. At the same time, it has advanced a religious discrimination bill to better protect people of faith from discrimination. Then what happened? In short, the ALRC and the government agreed that reviewing anti-discrimination laws while the Religious Discrimination Act was being developed was futile and suspended the investigation until it began. But by early 2020, the Religious Discrimination Act was on hold due to the bushfires and the pandemic.

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Its return in late 2021 has led several Liberal MPs to pressure the government to revisit discrimination against LGBTQI students - an unfulfilled vow in 2018. Shortly before parliament resumes this year, Morrison confirmed he would change the law in some way "to ensure that children are not discriminated against". What problems are at play? Loading The banishment of homosexuality is the weak link of the wedge. Religious groups have long argued that this does not happen, and there seem to be few examples. That's why groups such as Equality Australia, which advocates for LGBTQI causes, believe the proposed changes are woefully inadequate. Schools and teachers may continue to discriminate in many other ways, including by questioning or denying recognition of students’ sexual orientation or gender identity, punishing them, withholding or denying leadership o