End homophobia and transphobia

LGBTIQ+ oppression is structured into a system that relies on the nuclear family and rigid gender roles to organise unpaid domestic and caring labour, and oppress women. That system has given schools, hospitals and other institutions the right to discriminate against LGBTIQ+ staff, students and patients under the guise of religious freedom and allows right-wing politicians weaponise gender and sexuality education for electoral gain.

As a consequence of this discrimination within systems of education, healthcare and aged care, LGBTIQ+ people experience psychological distress at more than four times the rate of the broader community. More than three-quarters of trans and gender diverse Victorians report being treated unfairly when accessing health services. The Queensland and Northern Territory governments have already banned or severely restricted gender-affirming care for under-18s. One Nation has called for an immediate ban on all gender-affirming care for young people, including puberty blockers and hormone therapies. Victorian Socialists reject this backlash and will fight for trans healthcare, inclusive education, and an end to every institution's right to discriminate.

What we think

1. LGBTIQ+ oppression is rooted in how capitalism organises the family and enforces gender roles to reproduce unpaid labour and it must be fought at that structural level, not treated as just a matter of individual attitudes.
2. No school, hospital, aged care provider, or employer should have the right to discriminate against LGBTIQ+ people on religious or any other grounds.
3. Trans and gender diverse people, including young people, have the right to access gender-affirming healthcare, fully funded and free from political interference.
4. Intersex people have the right to bodily autonomy.
5. Gender and sexuality education must be delivered as a matter of course and protected from right-wing political interference, not treated as a special or contested subject.

We’ll fight to

1. Remove all exemptions that allow institutions to discriminate against LGBTIQ+ people on religious grounds.
2. Strengthen enforcement of Victoria’s Change or Suppression (Conversion) Practices Prohibition Act and extend protections to ensure no form of conversion practice can be conducted in any setting, including online or by practitioners operating across state borders.
3. Significantly increase specialist emergency and transitional housing for LGBTIQ+ young people, who are disproportionately represented in the homeless population primarily as a result of family rejection.
4. Ensure inclusive, age-appropriate sexuality and gender education in all Victorian schools, with comprehensive professional learning for teachers and support staff, and protect this curriculum from political interference.
5. Fully fund free, accessible, timely gender-affirming care across Victoria, including for young people, and take action to reduce waiting times in the public system.
6. Ensure all LGBTIQ+ people across Victoria can access safe, affirming health services.
7. Require that any procedure modifying the sex characteristics of an intersex child either be immediately medically necessary to prevent serious harm, or delayed until the individual is able to give their own informed consent.
8. Ensure LGBTIQ+ older people have access to affirming, inclusive aged care services, with specific standards and training requirements for aged care providers operating in Victoria.
9. Make it easier for parents and carers of transgender and gender-diverse children and young people to amend their child’s birth certificate to reflect their name and gender, removing the requirement for the other named parent’s agreement where that parent is absent, uncontactable, or estranged due to family violence.
10. Oppose any attempt by One Nation or any other party to restrict access to gender-affirming care, remove inclusive education from schools, or wind back anti-discrimination protections for LGBTIQ+ people.