#teamequality

Well, I’ve been to several of these so I’ll do the best I can.

8K people have said they’re going to the Brisbane event. Lots of those people won’t show up but there’s still quite a lot of people. It’s in a nice open space near water if that helps.

It is expected to be safe. We have extremely low levels of violence at protests and they are usually well-run and positively framed so there’s not a great deal of conflict.

There are usually some tables eg the Greens might show up (they are pro marriage equality), and there are usually some left wing magazines etc, and maybe people facepainting, selling pride flags etc. There will be speakers who may ask for a few chants, but they’re not usually aggressive - it would be something like “what do we want” “marriage equality” (or “conscience vote” which is a long story but it should lead to marriage equality”) / “love is love” / etc.

Really all they want is your presence. Numbers. Bonus points if you can dress brightly, join in the chants, and maybe carry a sign or flag or something. It’s not a march, it’s more of a gathering, to show solidarity (and get media & politicians’ attention). Also posting pics on social media is usually good. But as for expectations and requirements? Just showing up is the main goal.

In short: probably crowded, but not aggressive.

There will almost definitely be at least one health tent there so it might be a good idea to scout that out. Maybe message one of the organisers or comment on the FB page to check?

And if you’re really worried but still want to go, maybe wear a wristband or carry a card you can pull out that says something like “I have anxiety (or whatever - maybe even just ‘I need help’), please take me away from the crowd.” Loads of people at the event will a) be decent humans and b) will probably be relatively sympathetic toward mental illness as lots of them tend to be younger people and/or socially active and/or online active people who are aware of that kind of thing.

And/or go with a friend who can keep an eye on you.

If you end up deciding that it’s too much pressure or w’ever, don’t stress too much! You’re there in spirit, and you can contribute in other ways.

This site and this site help you message MPs and Senators. It’s smaller-scale, but a) it’s better than nothing b) it hopefully won’t trigger you which is a plus and c) from a political science POV, the amount of effort it takes to write a letter gives it extra cred which makes up for a bit of the scale. Remember, all you need to do with this message is express that you support marriage equality. You can of course say why if you want to, and you can (and maybe even should) mention the rally (and don’t be afraid of getting sympathy points for however much detail you’re willing to go into about why you couldn’t attend, if you want) but you don’t have to. You don’t have to have any facts or stats or anything behind you - that’s all out there in spades for them to see. What it’s coming down to in this stretch of the debate is “does Australia/my electorate support it?” so all you have to do is tell them that yes, you do.

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Marriage Equality Rallies Across Australia

As the Liberal Party’s vital decision on a conscience vote approaches, Equal Love invites you to join their rallies across the country. For more info, message me x.

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General FB event x

Brisbane x 11am, 8 Aug, Queens Gardens.

Perth x 1pm, 9th Aug, Murray St Mall. Sydney x 1pm, 9th Aug, Sydney Town Hall.

#rape

This has been bothering me for most of today. It's about that tag that I put on the video I posted yesterday (no I'm not posting it again). Does that word describe the abhorrence for what I saw? According to Urban Dictionary, rape is described as:

A crime. Quite terrible in nature. Often causes sever phycological damage to victim. Forced sexual intercourse. Often very violent in more then just a sexual way.

So was what I saw rape? No, but I believe it was a justified overreaction. I mean, did the woman enjoy having her blouse cut in half? No she did not. Did the boy enjoy having to run in with a sheet to cover her exposed bosom? No he did not.

So I would downgrade it to a sexual assault. But that is NO excuse for it to be shown on a children's show. That is NO excuse for a mascot to be premeditating his calculated mishap. That is NO excuse for an Olympic mascot to be smug like nothing had happened.

A how would I have to explain this evil to my tulpae? How would would I explain the evil humanity does to each over? How do I explain evil in general?

Even though I believe it wasn't invited because LA 84 wasn't that important for Brazil, I like to think that karma has denied Sam the Eagle the opportune to welcome the Rio mascot, whatever it may be. Long may it treat women with respect they deserve of themselves for being themselves.

I  feel pretty terrible, I plan on speeding the misery with the return of my bad music in the next post. Would this would be a raping? No this is different. It wouldn't be just women who were offended. Everyone would be affected; males, trannies, asexual, and I haven't got them all. At least it would be better than Nickelback. Or could it get worse?