As World Pride wrapped up in Sydney – which became the global LGBT capital for 17 days – the city witnessed a historic moment.
For the first time, a prime minister marched alongside the LGBT community at the Mardi Gras parade, testifying that Australia, where homosexuality was punishable by death in early colonial times, has come a long way.
Several surveys also indicate that Sydney is one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world.
Barely four weeks after landing in Sydney, Mae is walking along the colourful stalls of the Mardi Gras Fair in Victoria Park.
The difference between Sydney and her hometown, Paris, is stark.
“ It’s way more open”.
“ There are more bars and LGBT places, and right now all over town, you can see rainbow flags everywhere, in front of every shop… It’s really not like that in France”.
“In town too, you notice way more LGBT people and you can feel they’re not being judged. For the LGBT community, this city is like paradise”, she tells SBS French.
The open-mindedness, at first, scared Laurent.
He moved to Sydney 15 years ago. Being used to hiding his sexuality when he was living in Paris, Laurent wasn’t expecting to be able to live his relationship so openly.
Laurent Auclair is a French-Australian screenwriter. As a gay man, he feels way more safe in Sydney than in Paris.
“ My boyfriend is Australian, and hence, used to this tolerance”.
“ So, as soon as we moved here, he was holding my hand while walking in the street, or at the beach, we would even kiss”.
“ And at first, it really scared me because I would have never done that in Paris, outside of the Marais (the Paris gay neighborhood)”.
“ But for my boyfriend, this was his culture and he knew it was safe.
"It took me some time to adjust but then I got really relaxed and it made me feel good because for the first time, people weren’t seeing me as a potential homosexual, but simply as a human being”, says Laurent.
As the look in other people’s eyes changed, Laurent changed as well.
“ Since I moved to Sydney, my lifestyle completely changed, as did the way I dress up and behave. I guess it helped me accept my homosexuality, my feminine side which I was always repressing in Paris” he adds.
François, who’s been living in Australia for more than 35 years, feels exactly the same.
Raised in a conservative family from a blue-collar Parisian suburb, he left France at a very young age because there was no role model he could relate to.
It was first in London that he found a world where he felt like he was fitting in.
François Audouard moved from France to Australia in 1986. After 25 years spent in Sydney, he now lives in Lismore.
“ In my hometown, there was absolutely nothing gay. And on TV, you’d see only caricatures of gay people, like transvestites or drag queens – no one I could identify to”.
“When I moved to London, it felt somehow more democratic. You had gay people from all walks of life who would gather in bars and clubs. I felt relieved because, for the first time, I met gay people who were like me”, Francois tells SBS French.
He lived in London for a few years and then moved to Los Angeles, where also he was able to fully embrace his homosexuality.
But in Sydney, where he arrived in the middle of the AIDS epidemic, in 1986, he discovered a never-seen-before sense of community amongst homosexual people.
“ In the US, there was no social security. So, when someone would fall sick, they’d just die alone, which was horrible to witness”.
“ But in Sydney, the gay community had a much stronger sense of solidarity. And when people would get AIDS and fall ill, they wouldn’t get cast away from the community”.
“I thought it was beautiful, and it made want to be part of that community”, he adds.
It’s an important milestone for Caroline as well, who shares her life with an Australian woman she met in Paris.
She says that even before the plebiscite, gay couples were already officially recognised, which was enough for her to obtain a partner visa for Australia.
Caroline Nin is a French singer based in Sydney. She's been sharing her life with her aussie partner for 15 years.
“ In 2010, I applied to get a permanent resident visa. My partner Michelle told me not to worry as we were in a de facto relationship”.
“ So, we gathered evidence of our relationship which had started in 2008, like my name on our utility bills, a gym membership etc, but I was still in disbelief. And when I checked, and got confirmation that de facto relationships, even gay relationships are recognised, it really blew my mind”, she says.
"The referendum hurt me hard"
Laurent has more mixed memories of the plebiscite, blaming then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull for « not having the guts to legalise gay marriage directly in Parliament”.
“ During the campaign prior to the vote, I felt like a half-citizen, and the rejection expressed by some felt like a punch in the face”.
“ Having to go via a referendum was like saying to us, ‘you’re not exactly normal people, so we’re going to ask everyone if you should have the same rights’. It hurt me really hard and I’m not sure if I’ve moved on yet”, he adds.
For Caroline and the others that SBS French spoke to, the grass is greener in Australia for LGBT people than in France. But still, she thinks lesbians still have lower acceptability than gay men.
“Gay men have it way easier than women. It can still be a handicap for women to come out. Take actress Rebel Wilson, for example. She was really popular and since she came out, she’s being harassed and trolled online”, she weighs in on the gender gap related to homosexuality.
This is why, even though a lot has been accomplished and there are far worse places for LGBT people to live in, Mardi Gras is not just about partying and celebrating.
It’s also very political. Just as the Pride March, which saw thousands walk the Harbour Bridge last Sunday, it is a powerful, colourful way to ask for equality for all, all around the world, as homosexuality still remains criminalised in 68 countries.
