An LGBT advocacy group is demanding new “sexual vilification” laws in response to flyers circulating in Perth, and says they perpetuate a stereotype of homosexuals being paedophiles.
The flyers feature the names and photos of members of the local “LGBTIQA+ community”, with one falsely accused of drugging children they meet on gay dating apps, and another alleged to have been trafficked by a Taiwanese crime syndicate since he was 10.
WA Police said no charges had been laid over the flyers, which have been placed in letterboxes in the suburbs of Victoria Park, West Perth, Highgate and Maylands for over a year, The West Australian reported.
Dr Misty Farquhar, chief executive of LGBTQIA+ peak body Rainbow Futures WA, said the flyers were “hate speech” and showed the state’s brand new laws targeting racial and religious hatred needed to be expanded to cover so-called gender identity and sexual orientation.
“A lot of (the flyers) are accusing people of being criminals in sexual ways . . . accusing them of being paedophiles or being other kinds of sexual predators when they are based on nothing,” said Dr Farquhar, who describes herself as being an “Anglo-Indian non-binary bisexual”.
“We only have anti-vilification laws on the basis of race, but no other kind of identity. If somebody was putting the flyers out on the basis of a person’s race, then they could be convicted but they can’t in this way.”
She added that new laws were needed “as soon as possible”, claiming people in WA were “feeling more and more unsafe” because of a “brashness around hate at the moment”.
Attorney-General Tony Buti said he was “appalled” by the flyers, and that the government was looking at passing new anti-vilification laws.
“The Government is considering the recommendations of the Law Reform Commission of WA and the Disability Royal Commission to expand the scope of existing anti-vilification provisions,” he said.
“The Government will also soon be introducing new Equal Opportunity legislation which will improve civil protections relating to vilification and harassment.”
Header image: One of the flyers (supplied).
