Homophobic anti-marriage equality material surfaces in postal survey campaign

Materials labelling homosexuality a “curse of death” and claiming 92% of children of gay parents suffer abuse have surfaced in two separate incidents of homophobic campaigns against same-sex marriage.

Advocates have condemned the material, which included a poster urging Australians to “stop the fags” in Melbourne and a leaflet printed in English and Mandarin found in Hurstville, Sydney.

The poster, found in Heffernan Lane in the Melbourne CBD, claimed that children of gay parents are disproportionately abused, suffer depression and are obese.

The vast majority of studies show children with LGBTI parents are no worse off than those with heterosexual parents, including a survey of academic literature by the Australian Institute of Family Studies.

The poster depicts two figures menacing a blond child with rainbow belts.

The leaflet, targeted at English- and Chinese-speaking Australians, warned that homosexuality is “a curse of death in terminating the family line … without decedents [sic]”.

“Homosexuality is a tragedy of a family, a grave to the family bloodline, a curse of family sonlessness!”

The pamphlet also claimed that same-sex marriage would lead to “transexual ‘counterfeit’ women” having access to women’s bathrooms which it said would make it easier for rapists to target women.

It said that “anal sex among some homosexuals is the main source of HIV/Aids transmission”. The highest prevalence of HIV is still among gay men in Australia, however one-quarter of new infections in the four years to 2013 were attributed to heterosexual sex.

Long-time LGBTI rights advocate and Just Equal spokesman, Rodney Croome, said: “The hate displayed in these posters will shock and disgust the overwhelming majority of Australians.

“We call upon prime minister Malcolm Turnbull to condemn this vilification and set out the parameters for respectful debate.”

Croome said advocates had warned the government a plebiscite or postal survey “would amplify extremist and hateful views, yet the prime minister assured us of a respectful debate”.

“It is now incumbent on the prime minister, who initiated the postal vote campaign, to take responsibility and denounce anti-LGBTI vilification like this poster.”

When he announced the postal survey on 8 August Turnbull said the “weakest argument” against it was to claim it would unleash hurtful debate.

Turnbull added he thought it had “no basis” and amounted to saying “the Australian people are not capable of having a respectful discussion on this issue”.

“Australians are able and have demonstrated that they can have a respectful discussion. I am committed to that.”

In a speech to parliament on 10 August the Labor leader, Bill Shorten, warned the campaign would result in material that would “vilify and demean LGBTI Australians and their children”.

The opposition leader told Turnbull he would hold him “responsible for every hurtful bit of filth that this debate will unleash”.

“Not because the prime minister has said it, not because he agrees to it. He clearly doesn’t.

“But because the prime minister has licensed this debate. You are the leader, Mr Turnbull, you have given permission.”

The Labor senator Jenny McAllister, who is chairing the Senate inquiry into the postal survey, urged Australians to report offensive material to it to gain a “comprehensive overview of the conduct of the campaign”.

“Hateful contributions to public debate should not be allowed to go unchallenged.

“Less than a fortnight into the government’s expensive and unnecessary postal plebiscite we are already seeing examples of campaign material that doesn’t meet the standard of respectful debate.”

In 2016, when responding to homophobic comments by Islamic leader Sheikh Shady Alsuleiman, including that homosexuality “spreads disease”, Turnbull said that “homophobia is to be condemned everywhere”.

Turnbull has also previously urged participants in the debate “to act with responsibility and with respect for those on the other side”.

A spokesman for the prime minister said that Turnbull believes those comments apply in the case of the poster and leaflet.