Thomas Stoddard, University of Technology Sydney and Tom Lee, University of Technology Sydney
In the year since the resounding Yes vote in the same-sex marriage survey, the flag has clearly escaped the pole or the street bunting of pride festival times to become ever present in our cities.
Twitter can be a useful tool in trying to predict what people think on an issue. So why did a study of almost half a million tweets on the same-sex marriage survey get it wrong?
What’s still missing in the religious freedoms debate is any clarity around what people think they won’t be able to do, or where the existing laws are likely to fail to protect them.
Despite its dubious ancestry, the popular vote on same-sex marriage has done its job, delivering an overall majority and majorities in all states and territories.
The ‘yes’ vote disproves that the rise of the minor party vote is the result of a cultural backlash from people who reject the progressive agenda, including the expansion of rights for minorities.
Not everyone who could vote did vote in the voluntary postal vote on same-sex marriage. So what can we draw from the result if only four out of five eligible Australians took part?
Malcolm Turnbull needs to continue to stare down the conservative forces in his government, because what they are demanding is prejudiced and discriminatory.
After an ugly and unnecessary postal survey, Malcolm Turnbull has had a win – but the conservatives in his government will still be pitching for a fight.
Australia voted Yes to legalising same-sex marriage today, and it’s more important than ever to talk to your children about same-sex marriage and relationships.