The jist.

With the resent resignation of David Shearer as leader of one of New Zealand’s major parties, the labour party, the title of leader has been opened for the taking. One of the prime candidates is Shearers deputy leader, Grant Robertson.

Robertson has been ladled as a prime candidate by many other party members, and one of the main parties that work with labour, the green party, although not stating their preference, stated that 'the party would find all three likely contenders - David Cunliffe, Grant Robertson and Andrew Little - easy to work with.' In an article on stuff.co.nz.\

So what’s the issue?

And what makes Robertson so different?

If Robertson was to become leader of the Labour party, not only would he be the first openly gay leader of a major party, but he could also potentially become the world’s first openly gay Prime minister.

Although the thought of this fills me with excitement and restores my faith in the world, I just don’t think we are ready just yet. Yes we just passed the marriage equality bill, and yes New Zealand has come a long way in terms of acceptance but there is still a strong stigma around the idea of being gay, and the gay community.

The main reason I don’t think we are ready is because if Robertson was voted in, the harassment that he might receive could have a huge affect on young LGBT kids that are currently looking for role models to help them through the process of accepting themselves.

another reason why we arnt ready for a gay priminister is also because of the fact that we are definging him as just that.

Finally i don thinl that the WORLD is ready for a gay priminster. major powers in the world such as russia, many asian countrie and many arab countrys are not at the same level as New Zealand when it comes to equality.

Anyway let me know your views in the comments below and let’s get chatting.

Look forward to hearing from you :-)

The 'Maybe' factor.

Some people may argue my point by saying that we don't know this will happen for sure. these people may be somewhat correct but history has proven itself that we are not all fully accepting of LGBT people in higher roles.

In America, a gay politician was publicly harassed by a member of the public at a community festival in front of a number of family's.

although there is currently nothing of this extreme happening in NZ due to a lack of exsposure, many people are turning to 'online' to vent their thoughts.

As an example, there has been a number of negative comments on articles about robertsons potential leadership of the labor party. Following are a few examples:

although these slanderous comments are not being made in person, this doesn't fully excuse them.

youth today are online more than ever, and these sorts of comments will reach more of an audience than by any other means.

comments taken from 3news.co.nz and nzherald.co.nz

How we would fit in with the rest of world.

The level that New Zealand is at in terms of equality is a fantastic one. We have legalized the marriage of same sex couples, and the acceptance of LGBT people in the community is growing at an alarming rate.

Unfortunately though, for many parts of the world, we are quite a bit ahead. Still in some parts of Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and the Americas, Homosexuality is still seen as a crime, are people are still jailed and prosecuted for being gay. some even beaten and killed.In fact there are 72 countries currently in the world were it is illegal, as seen in dark grey in the map below;

One of the issues New Zealand could face as a nation if we were to have a prime minister who was gay, would be discrimination from other country's. as much as we would love to not define people by there sexuality, in reality this is what could happen.

The importance of gay role models to LGBT youth

I read an interesting article this morning on the importance of role models for LGBT youth.

Although the statistics apply to America, the article brings up some valid points about the importance that role models have on children, especially to try portray that LGBT children can be just as successful as other children.

In respect to my previous statement about New Zealand not being ready for a prime minister who is gay (because of the affect it could have on youth) the following article also talks about the affect the role models can have on children in general.

It brings up a valid point about the influence it has on children if role models are treated a certain way;

'If a role model is seen to be rewarded for a behavior, the behavior is more likely to be copied. For example, if a young girl sees her older sister praised for baking lovely cakes she is more likely to copy her sister’s behavior. Equally, if a young boy sees an older boy rewarded with respect and status for being involved in a gang, he is also likely to copy this less desirable behavior'

applying this to the situation of Having a prime minister who is gay, it would have the same affect but in the opposite way. Youth would see the sort of harassment that could potentially come from the public and see being gay as being a BAD trait, and therefore seeing being gay as a 'bad thing'. 

Wrappin it up

Basically, although the thought of it is fantastic, and it would be awesome if it did happen, having a prime minister who is gay is potentially a very bad idea. it does suck that this is the reality, but it is what it is and we may just have to wait a little while longer for our time.

The affect that it could have on LGBT youth if there was to be slander towards him could strongly affect the progress we have made/ are making towards the acceptance of LGBT youth being comfortable within themselves. This is due to the strong affect role models have on children.

I also fear that having a gay prime minster could also have a strong affect on the nation in terms of acceptance with other countries. As stated previously, 76 countries have laws against homosexuality and have quite strong stances against it. this may affect our ability to work these countries in the future.

References

76+ countries where homosexuality is illegal. (n.d.). 76 CRIMES. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://76crimes.com/76-countries-where-homosexuality-is-illegal/

Gay Politician Harassed at Community Festival. (n.d.). Advocate.com. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://www.advocate.com/politics/politicians/2012/10/16/gay-politician-harassed-community-festival

Grant Robertson. (n.d.). Que Sera Blog Posts RSS. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://www.gaynz.com/blogs/quesera/?tag=grant-robertson

LGBT rights by country or territory. (2013, February 11). Wikipedia. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_by_country_or_territory

New Zealand Herald. (n.d.). The. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11117046

Psychologymum. (n.d.). Psychologymum. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://psychologymum.wordpress.com/2012/02/05/the-importance-of-role-models-on-childrens-behaviour/

Role Models for Gay Youth in America Can Be A Matter of Life and Death · Commentary · John R Selig. (n.d.). Role Models for Gay Youth in America Can Be A Matter of Life and Death · Commentary · John R Selig. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://www.johnselig.com/commentary/gayyouth/

The Global Divide on Homosexuality. (n.d.). Pew Global Attitudes Project RSS. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://www.pewglobal.org/2013/06/04/the-global-divide-on-homosexuality/

is nz ready. (n.d.). 3 news. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://www.3news.co.nz/Is-NZ-ready-for-a-gay-PM/tabid/1607/articleID/310516/Default.aspx

our work. (n.d.). issues. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://www.amnestyusa.org/our-work/issues/lgbt-rights