Professor Sidney Bloch shows support for Marriage Equality

Emeritus Professor Sidney Bloch

Emeritus Professor Sidney Bloch (Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne) had the following to say in August 2011 on allowing same-sex couples the right to marriage:

“Scientific knowledge of the mind is expanding all the time. In the past, psychiatry viewed homosexuality as a mental illness. Knowledge of sexuality has improved markedly and we now recognise that homosexuality is not an illness to be cured. Moreover, there is a growing body of research suggesting that gay and lesbian people can experience benefits to their mental health and well-being if their relationships are given the same social and legal recognition as heterosexual relationships. From a mental health standpoint, the benefits of marriage should be made available to all couples regardless of the gender of the partners.”

Australian Marriage Equality: Quotable Quotes

Research into the health and well-being consequences of denying same-sex attracted people the right to marry can be found at the Doctors for Marriage Equality web site.