Redefining marriage for 0.2% of the population

In Australia, marriage is currently defined as “the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others, voluntarily entered into for life.”

Proponents of Same-Sex Marriage want this definition changed, so that marriage will no longer be exclusively limited to “the union of a man and a woman.” The redefining of marriage will allow for couples of the same gender to marry each other.

Given the attention this subject has been granted of late, you’d be forgiven for thinking that same-sex couples made up a large percentage of the population. But in reality, that’s just not the case.

According to the 2016 census, 46,800 same-sex couples were counted across Australia, making up just under 0.4% of the population.

When the University of Queensland surveyed LGBTI Australians, the results indicated that only 54% of same-sex couples would actually get married if the definition changed. This would suggest that Australians are being asked to redefine marriage for 0.2% of the population.

The same census revealed Muslims currently make up 2.6% of the population. And under Islamic marital jurisprudence, Muslim men are allowed to have more than one wife at the same time. So, the question is, once we remove “the union of a man and a woman” from the Marriage Act for 0.2% of the population, what reason do we have for denying 2.6% if they were ever to demand the removal of “to the exclusion of all others?”