It’s shameful being gay was a crime in Victoria before 1980. Daniel Andrews’ conversion practices bill is shameful too

Shamefully, being gay was a crime in Victoria before 1980. It will be no less shameful that in 2021, talking to people about your sexuality in Victoria could be a crime.

The Change or Suppression (Conversion) Practices Prohibition Bill, which comes before the Victorian upper house this week, is supposed to protect LGBTQI people from coercion by religious people — but all it will do is remove their rights and turn bureaucrats into bullies.

I have approached this legislation with an open mind – I am not a religious conservative — and sat through many meetings with stakeholders from all sides of the argument.

There is no doubt that historically there have been some awful coercive practices involving church leaders…