News
Check this page regularly for updates about rainbow families issues in the news, our education and advocacy work, and the broader work of the Rainbow Families Council.
Co-convenors’ Report for 2009 AGM |
| Posted on Nov 18 2009 |
Co-convenors’ Report
for Rainbow Families Council Annual General Meeting November 15 2009
2009 has been a big year for law reforms impacting on the lives of many same sex parents and their families. Shortly after the 2008 AGM, we saw the changing of 85 federal laws to recognise same-sex relationships including same sex couples with children, followed quickly by the passing of the Assisted Reproductive Treatment Act 2008 here in Victoria, giving legal status to our families, access to fertility treatments that we were previously denied and introducing altruistic surrogacy, among other reforms.
Combined, both the federal and state law reforms are extremely significant and represent the fact that the law is finally catching up with the reality of our families lives in Victoria and Australia generally. They represent a victory for our children and our families, providing our families both with social recognition and legal protection. The passing of the ART Act in Victoria particularly represented a victory for the Rainbow Families Council and its members, who all made a contribution to the Love Makes a Family campaign. Rainbow Families Council members can be very proud of what we achieved during the past year, through the power of letter-writing, MP-visiting, working with the media – all led by past and present members of the Rainbow Families Council committee. The Council plans to archive and document the campaign in the coming year.
Moving into 2009 we enjoyed the fun of festival season. Rainbow Families Council organised and/or participated in a flurry of family events including:
• Kidzone at Midsumma Carnival
• Cha-Cha Sam performances at Northcote Town Hall
• Pride March – led by Tykes on Trikes
• Celebration Picnic at Edinburgh Gardens
• ChillOut Festival stall
• Melbourne Queer Film Festival Kids Session
We have enjoyed getting out and about in our community throughout the year and have promoted Rainbow Families Council by visiting community groups such as Prospective Lesbian Parents and Greek & Gay, speaking at the ALSO Rural Forum and through the queer media, especially Joy FM.
As co-convenors we answer a lot of enquiries which come via our website:
• Personal requests for support/information for a range of issues relating to families.
• Expressions of interest for getting involved as a volunteer or committee member.
• Requests from researchers, students and documentary makers.
We have started a register of enquiries received so that we can keep track of the types of information people are looking for. It will help us make our website more relevant and also help us to advocate on behalf of our community.
The Rainbow Families Council is completely voluntary and relies on the passion and enthusiasm of our committee members. It’s not always easy to juggle work, kid wrangling, domestic duties, social lives and volunteer work, and we admire all our committee members for the contribution they have made. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank:
• Amelia
• Mandy
• Ruth
• Felicity
• Annette
• Orania
• Sam
• Ruby and Nellie
• Louise
• Geoffrey
Coming up in 2010 we have more family fun lined up:
• Midsumma Picnic – Sunday 31 January, going west this time to Yarraville Gardens.
• Kidzone at Carnival – Sunday 17 January, Alexandra Gardens.
• Pride March – Sunday 7 February, St Kilda. Let’s double the number of Tykes on Trikes this year!
• Rainbow Families Conference – Saturday 13 February, Northcote Town Hall.
more info see Events
We encourage you to come to our social events, to join one of our working groups, to come along to the conference… get involved and help us do our best for rainbow families of all shapes and sizes.
 Rainbow Families Council 2010 Federal Election statement | downloads: 9 | type: pdf | size: 157 kB |
| Federal inquiry into donor conception - RFC information sheet | downloads: 8 | type: pdf | size: 807 kB |
Rainbow Families Council's suggestions for responding to the federal inquiry |
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| Victorian Assisted Reproductive Treatment Authority News July 2010 | downloads: 13 | type: pdf | size: 61 kB |
Rainbow Families Council Newsletter
Rainbow Families Council produces a semi-regular newsletter with updates on all our activities. You can receive it hot off the keyboard by signing up to our e-list, or read it online here.
