Religion and politics after marriage equality in Australia: contemporary challenges in the politics of religious freedom

ABSTRACT

The passage of marriage equality via the Marriage Amendment (Definition and Religious Freedoms) Act 2017 ushered in a new era for religion and politics in Australia. The polarised public debate that was provoked in the lead-up to the legislation continued and only served to entrench the perceived incompatibility of religious freedom and LGBTIQ+ rights. The articles in this Symposium responding to these developments were first presented as works-in-progress at a Macquarie University workshop on ‘Religion and Politics after Marriage Equality’. In the Introduction to this Symposium, we briefly outline the history and context of the religious freedom debate that crystalised after 2017 to introduce the three interdisciplinary articles that follow, each offering a unique perspective on the public, political, and highly personal controversies that accompanied this momentous change. Together these articles seek to enhance our understanding of how the discourse of religious freedom is being wielded for political gain.

KEYWORDS:

• Marriage equality
• LGBTIQ+
• religion
• religious freedom‌
• Australian politics

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded by the Australian Political Studies Association, the Macquarie University Centre for Agency Values and Ethics, and the Macquarie University Faculty of Arts.

Notes on contributors

Kate Gleeson

Kate Gleeson is Associate Professor of Politics and Law at Macquarie University.

Elenie Poulos

Elenie Poulos is an Adjunct Fellow at Macquarie University.