New South Wales - Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras 1999

The 1999 Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras

[Note: the new photos are down the end of this page]

1999 saw us embark on yet one more annual pilgrimage to the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras.

It comes as a shock for some to realize that Australia hosts the largest such Parade in the World. Spread over an entire month and culminating in a evening street parade that attracts a crowd of 750,000 the festival marks not only the continued campaign for equal rights and tolerance but also a determination to have a damn good time!

The events had their birth in a small street march during the winter of 1977. Some 50 people, both gay and straight, marched to protest against

the criminal laws that were used to gaol gay men and
to protest the harassment and often violent treatment that was routinely meted out on gay and lesbian men and women by the NSW police.

Although the organizers had applied well in advance for a permit to march they were continually frustrated by the same police force - it was they who gave out such permits and it was they who refused to grant "permission" that would allow people to make an entirely legitimate political protest.

Determined to be heard, the march went ahead regardless and resulted in mass arrests despite being peaceful and good-humoured.

What followed that night at Darlinghurst Police station has gone down in history. The police bashed both men and women inside the station and sparked further days of protest and arrest outside the building. The Sydney Morning Herald - a low-brow paper still infamous for it's anti-gay attitudes - ran a full list of the details of all those arrested at the protest and many emerged from a fearful and abusive night in police custody only to find they had been fired from their jobs.

But people had had enough. Rather than quash the protests the response to that first march only sparked more determined opposition. As each year passed the march grew larger and was eventually moved from mid-Winter to the end of our Southern Summer.

In 1986 the NSW finally removed the criminals laws against male homosexuality; but there remains much to protest against.

Most of the unequal treatment built into the law hinges - ultimately - on lack of legal recognition of same-sex relationships. Although gay men and women contribute in equal measure to the workforce and as taxpayers the bulk of government legislation refuses to give us equal access to either the benefits or the security of legal status.

Many of these are not minor matters and have long been extended to de-facto heterosexual couples. They are applied regardless of how long a gay couple has been together and include:

Legal recognition as the partner
- We have no right to visit sick partners in hospital
- We have no right to determine medical treatment on behalf of our partner
- We have no right to visit our partner if they were to be arrested and held in custody
Legal recognition as the surviving partner on the death of one of us. This has important taxation implications and does impose severe financial and emotional stress on elderly gay men or women who have survived a partner.
- At present we cannot inherit the home we have made together unless we pay tax. Straight couples pay no tax.
- At present we cannot inherit many superannuation or similar retirement entitlements and may only do so for the others if we pay tax on them. Straight couples pay no tax and are entitled to them all.
- At present we are ineligible for many pension entitlements as a couple (war service being a prime example)
Recognition of our legal right to arrange the funeral of our partner.
Recognition of adoption and access rights to the children of our partners. A considerable number of women and a large number of men enter into gay relationships with children from previous relationships and although the gay partner may in fact be a primary care-giver to such children they remain a stranger under the law. Things like emergency medical treatment or contributing toward the schooling of those children becomes difficult and sometimes impossible without legal status as the partner (Note: this is not about adoption as such. It is about the achieving the same legal status given to step-fathers and step-mothers in heterosexual second marriages etc)

These "requests" may seem somewhat obscure, even trivial, to many heterosexuals who take such things for granted and may wonder why "we" need them also. However such omissions of legal status have the potential to cause enormous hardship at the very time people need greatest support.

Take, for example, the issue of taxation of the family home. A gay couple may have owned and lived in a house for 40 years. On the death of one partner the survivor is faced with a tax bill of tens of thousands of dollars if they wish to remain in the house in which they shared all those memories. Often elderly people do not have immediate access to such a large sum of money and in such cases are forced to sell the home and move out. Straight couples do not face this situation and may inherit the home tax-free.

What most heterosexuals fail to recognize, apparently, is that gay couples are never classified as a "de-facto" couple in Australia. Many heterosexuals assume that we are counted as de-facto, but this only reflects how far the wider society has moved toward recognition of us rather than the law itself.

To be perfectly blunt; the parents of either Grant or Dale actually have the right to refuse to allow the other to visit their son in hospital and they have the right to completely take over the arrangement of the funeral of their son and actually ban the other from the service if they felt so inclined. (Fortunately for us, they do not feel this way and would not "exercise their rights"!). Our parents are able to do this with no regard for how long we have been together as a couple and with no regard for the blatantly obvious way we have decide to share joint financial arrangements etc. Our opinions in this matter count for nothing.

As two individuals we are able to pay a great deal of money drawing up legal documents giving each other Power of Attorney etc but any of these are open to legal challenge. The legal wife or the legal husband in a heterosexual relationship does not face these worries and is assumed as automatically having preference over any other person.

As time has passed it is no longer enough that we gay men and women "feel happy" merely with not having the threat of criminal laws against homosexuality hanging over our heads. We know there is still much work to be done and we know we will eventually see those aspirations come to fruition.

In the 21 years since that first protest march in Sydney we have been able to establish open and long-term relationships and we have come to see that we too need security in our old age. Previously such things were only dreamed of.

As surviving partners we need to be able to inherit the family home and we need access to pension and superannuations for exactly the same reasons that straight couples need these "rights". The AIDS tsunami that swept the community for 10 years from the early 1980's has highlighted our need for legal recognition so that we too may care for sick or dying partners in the same way that straight couples do. The epidemic - if nothing else - showed to outsiders that gay couples willingly support and love their partners in times of need.

Opinions and the social agenda have changed because of there is now belated recognition slowly being given both to what gay couples mean together and to what we contribute to each other and to the wider community.

The message is getting through!:

This is not about sex. Our concerns are not about sex as that has actually always been readily available; even if hidden from sight.
Our underlying concerns are really about exactly the same issues that worry heterosexual couples
to give and receive love,
to give and receive companionship,
to take responsibility for each other,
to trust in each other and
to contribute to our society.
Our struggle today is to see our commitment to care for each other recognized both socially and in the law.
Asking for what others already have is not asking for something special.

The SG&LMG remains Australia's largest single tourism event, and our largest single annual gathering. Figures from the Graduate School of Management have placed the contribution to the economy at $100 million (1998). What is more remarkable - and something that should not escape the attentions of our community - is that this event is staged with only minimal assistance from government (the local South Sydney council contributes a few thousand dollars and has only done so only since the mid-1990's. Most of this appears to be spent on publicity material telling us how great they are as a local council!)

The conservative Prime Minister, John Howard, once again declined to offer any message of support; despite pledging on his election to represent all Australians regardless of whether they voted for him or whether he personally agreed with their political or social stances. Apparently "all Australians" is a term that means "all heterosexual Australians".

Regardless of how our Prime Minister feels about gay men and women all of our straight friends and supporters can be assured of one thing - you are both welcomed and encouraged to hold hands with us and take advantage of everything that the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras has to offer.

Yes, we do want you to recognize this festival as something gay and we dislike it when people overlook that fact.

But just as importantly we want you to actually enjoy your time "with us" and we hope that you too can give thanks for our sexuality and for our ability to love.

"Vive l'difference! Vive l'similarities!"
["Long live difference! Long live similarities!"]

	Where we stayed this year
	We stayed once again at the Camelot Motel on Victoria St, Darlinghurst. Possibly the ugliest hotel in the World from the outside it is at least cheap and comes with a separate kitchenette. As an extra and rare bonus for the area it also has a carpark. Victoria Street is noisy because ambulances run from (heterosexual) Kings Cross into St Vincents Hospital all night long but it is quite OK if you ask for a top floor room.	The delights of Oxford Street are only a few minutes walk away, the Green Park Hotel is also great for pre (or post) anything drinks and Cafe Fez opposite does a very good coffee and this is something that deserves respect in Sydney! (Late lunches are good too). Further down Victoria Street are a large number of eateries of all varieties and are good value.
	The Mardi-Gras Party included three shows - the 12 midnight show started 1½ hours late and featured the popular Danni Minogue singing her new single on the Mardi Gras label "Everlasting Night". The second show at 3am starred Jimmy Barnes and about 20 boy dancers and was received enthusiastically by the crowd (often overlooked, because the supporters of "Cold Chisel" in which Barnes was lead singer tend to be a rather red-neck element, is that Barnes himself has long had very supportive things to say about gay men and women). The final show at 10am ended in wild scenes with Marcia Hines bringing the roof down in a Mardi Gras appearance that was way overdue from an Australian gay icon. Backed by what seemed like 100 gold-clad dancers Marcia belted out one of her classics and finished by recalling her appreciation of our support in all her lean years and how vital the gay male (particularly) community had been to her career. Spectacular, and only to be expected from an artist who never fails to give out to the crowd both her enthusiasm for her work and the warmth of her character. We had the good fortune to see Marcia a few years back at the Crown Casino when she sang to a room full of obnoxious heterosexuals and two small tables of enthusiastic queens. The look on her face as she walked on stage at the Crown was priceless - an "Oh my gawd, what have I come to?" look of horror before she spotted the 6 boys at opposite sides of the room and gave both tables a wave of recognition and a "thanks for being here". Her voice remains extremely contemporary and at least we 6 thoroughly enjoyed her work from a career of 3 decades. "Your love still brings me to my knees" remains one of our all time favourite numbers and large numbers of American tourists expressed dismay that they had "lost" Marcia to Australia in the 1970's. Too bad boys! Your loss is our gain! (Marcia also has a daughter - Demi Hines - who has obviously also inherited her Mum's talents).
	The 1999 Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade
	Several years ago someone had a dream - to see a contingent of Melbourne boys march in the Parade in skimpy outfits and do a marching routine to dance music. The first year did not go well. 10 brave souls had their generator break down and they had to walk the route in silence. The next year they came with a truck and a back up generator and were enthusiastically received by the crowd.	Here in 1999 we now get a complete float and 90 cute boys with shiny outfits and angel wings, waving light sticks and dancing their way (in-time and in-step) down the 4 km of the Parade route! They all appeared to be having a ball and the crowd just loved it. One of the Parade highlights, and heaven only knows what next year will bring!
	Bill Clinton made a suprise visit - escorted by a troupe of Monica drags complete with oversized cigars and a phone-wielding Linda Tripp.	To blaring sounds of George Michael's "Outside" a large number of girls also went drag and marched down in LAPD uniforms. We nearly pissed ourselves laughing.
	To cheers from the crowd a very gold covered group from "Mature Aged Gays" followed a big purple dinosaur. We only hope we look as good and have as much fun as these men and women when we too are grey and wrinkled old-timers. Save us a membership card fellas!	The 1999 Australian Tennis Open (Melbourne) saw controversy as one of the rising young stars was outed as a lesbian. How the tabloids imagine they had "outed" someone who took her girlfriend and openly showed her affection for her is beyond us but they thought they'd uncovered something newsworthy. Naturally, a large bunch of dykes showed up at Mardi Gras and marched in tennis uniforms carrying oversized rackets. Too camp!
	It just wouldn't be the same without it, and as always some talented fellows turned up in HUGE frocks that represent hundreds of hours putting together feathers and sequins.	On the other hand, and showing a commendable level of fitness, a group of Greek guys went drag and energetically danced and waved scarves for 2 hours!
	Some of the biggest cheers are always saved for those wonderful Parents, Family and Friends of gay men and women who march under the PFLAG banner. And as always PFLAG certainly turned out the numbers.	The Parade is closed by the enormous numbers of marchers who represent every community support group under the sun. Despite the colour and fun at the start of the Parade it is these groups who take up most of the Parade and get wildly applauded. The marchers pictured headed the large group from HIV/AIDS Awareness.
	Several odd things struck us this year. The first was the lack of decoration on Oxford Street. In previous years the gay venues have decorated their awnings and roofs with banners and words of support. This year we only saw this from straight venues. Frankly guys, that is just not good enough. As patrons "we" support you all year and we don't think it's too much to ask that you give something back in such a form as a few banners and a bit of window tizzing! On a slightly more ominous note were the horrendous queues outside all bars and clubs. While some lines are to be expected these went well over the top! We were fortunate but others told tales of waiting for HOURS. We have a few thoughts on this. The venues, Mardi Gras organization and the government need to better organize things so that visitors and locals can actually do something while they are there! Perhaps temporary venue spaces need be arranged to cater for the weekend influx. Perhaps some of the licensing laws need be suspended for the weekend. And perhaps the emerging practice of the venues charging $40 for guaranteed access to a "Recovery" needs be looked at for what it really is - a means of squeezing an additional fortune out the punters. The truth is that extorting "tickets" out of patrons who merely want to get a beer is a very nasty turn of events and will do much to damage the reputation of the entire Mardi Gras. We love getting up to Sydney at that time of year, but next year another holiday in beautiful New Zealand will sound very attractive if we are faced with paying up a not inconsiderable sum or going thirsty. Now... just when is the next Hero Party in Auckland?... Toilets during the Parade: For the Sydney and NSW governments we have one major bone to pick - the toilet situation during the Parade continues to be an absolute disgrace! We have no idea what you are playing at but there is no way Melbourne would allow 750,000 to squeeze into Chapel Street and not also ensure that adequate toilets facilities were provided. Making hundreds of thousands of people go for a slash in the darker streets and laneways is not only pathetic it is downright smelly by the next day. Such facilities are not the responsibility of Mardi Gras organization because they are not responsible for the vast crowds of straight people who wish to see the Parade and the only sensible way of paying for providing the facilities is out of some general revenue fund. That means you! This is the most important tourist event in NSW and it's well overdue that you recognized and supported it as such. You - as a government counting the revenues - take much from this Parade and it's about time you also started protecting the "asset" you have actually never had to "invest" money in.
	Other things around Sydney this year
	Despite what Sydney people say about Melbourne we have nothing on Sydney when it comes to rain. Here is the harbour, seem as wet from both above and below!	Those who have read our NSW page will be familiar with our opinion of the vandalism inflicted on the surrounds of the Opera House. Incredibly, NSW has topped even that seen last year and allowed even MORE buildings to blight the area. We are almost at a loss for words.
	Above: Newtown Hotel, King Street One of the delights of visiting Sydney is catching up with some of those friends who have moved to the city. The Friday night before Mardi Gras saw a contingent from the Melbourne Business School turn up at the Newtown Hotel for pre-dinner beers.	Somewhat to Lochiel's suprise he discovered he had actually put foot inside a gay bar! (Not quite sure what he had been expecting of a gay bar but apparently the lack of horns on our foreheads or something did not immediately give the place away hahaha ...) Following a few "shouts" we all headed across King Street to confront the Bali Indonesia restaurant for food and more yelling across tables to one another. Grant and Dale then headed off to the Imperial where we danced, drank, saw drag shows and chatted to people until seeing the sun come up from the Court House Hotel in Oxford Street. Breakfast at California Cafe and then home to crash heavily onto the mattress! Thanks again go to Ellen for doing all the real running around and getting people together for the night two big hugs [And yes dear, the lack of sleep did catch up with us by Sunday night! That was only 33 continuous hours of drinking beer...]
	We don't find the Chinese or Vietnamese restaurants in Sydney provide quite the same quality or value as Melbourne but we can recommend somewhere for lunch in Chinatown and that's downstairs in the Food Court. It will bring back memories for those who have visited Singapore with a good range and reasonable prices.	Here is Dale on the sea-wall in the Botanic Gardens and facing (obviously!) the Harbour Bridge.
	We weren't expecting this but these two Melbourne boys nearly dropped dead when we heard a familiar "ding ding" and saw a *tram*. Apparently it's new, and will be used to transport people to the Sydney 2000 Olympics. Now... if they only hadn't got rid of all the rest of their trams in the 1950's...	Much of inner city Sydney is made up of narrow streets and terrace houses (like Melbourne). Here are a few good examples from Newtown.
	If you cross the Bridge and head to the North shore some fantastic views of Sydney city are available. Here is Grant standing in a very rain-sodden Balls Head park.	We also took a chance to go for a drive down the Southern coast with lunch at the Imperial Hotel in Coaldale and a drive back through the Royal National Park. Here is Dale contemplating the Hacking River.
		One of Grant's mates from his first days at University (1983, oooh scary!) has moved to Sydney and along with his lovely wife is expecting his first baby. Ying is having a rough pregnancy and is rather house-bound as a result but she does get a few rosellas as morning visitors who sit on the kitchen window and share some breakfast. Hang in there Ying! It'll all be worth it in no time at all ("Yeah, easy for you to say!").
	Travelling along the Hume Highway It takes about 10-11 hours to drive from Melbourne to Sydney and a number of pleasant if quiet country towns are passed on the way. Give up trying to get a decent coffee after 5pm! This is the main street of Yass (NSW) where one turns off the Hume Highway for Canberra. Yass is the centre of a fine wool district and many famous stud farms are based here.

Left: There is barely a regional town in SE Australia that does not have it's "T&G Tower". This one is in Albury.
Below: Albury also has a number of attractive public buildings including the Town Hall.

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New format posted January 13, 1998
This page posted 2 March 1999