Tag Archives: Same Sex Wedding

New Qantas ad features sweet same-sex wedding and Sydney Mardi Gras

A new ad by airline Qantas features a same-sex wedding, Hugh Jackman and scenes from the Sydney Mardi Gras parade.

The ad starts off with Jackman talking about the ‘Spirit of Australia’ connecting people.

He says: ‘It connects us no matter where we were born, how we look or how we live.

‘Our spirit is about standing up for what’s right, standing up for a fair go and about standing up for those who can’t,’ he says.

The video then jumps into a song that sings ‘We’re going to stand up with pride’ and ‘Stand up!’

It cuts to various scenes, including a same-sex wedding where two women place rings on each other and then kiss.

Another scene is from the Sydney Mardi Gras, where a guy throws confetti in the air and a group of marchers wave glow sticks in unison.

Alan Joyce is the openly gay CEO of Qantas, said he believes being open about being gay ‘allows him to be himself at work and demonstrates to others that it hasn’t hindered his career.’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBd1pbIiLTc

In an interview in 2016, the CEO said;

‘‘I can say categorically that we wouldn’t have gotten through the transformation and the tough times of this business as well as we did without having that diversity in the top leadership team.

At the end of the day, it makes you a better business.”

During Australia’s fight for same-sex marriage equality last year, Joyce donated $1 million to the ‘yes’ campaign.

Earlier this year, he also became the co-patron of national LGBTI workplace inclusion program, Pride in Diversity.

Australia’s First Same-Sex Wedding Will Happen This Weekend

Lauren Price and Amy Laker from Sydney will be the first same-sex couple to marry in Australia after receiving special permission to tie the knot this Saturday, three weeks before marriage equality takes effect in the rest of the country.

The pair have been waiting for more than two years to marry.

They were given an exemption from the notice period because Ms Price’s family, who live in the UK, would only be able to attend if the wedding took place this week.

The exemption was granted on financial grounds, citing the travel of close relatives.

We went in there and made our case, the officials left the room to make their decision. It was the longest ten minutes of our lives – our hands were so sweaty. When she came back in and said she had good news I just started crying.”

Before Australia’s equal marriage law was passed, the couple had already made plans to get married at the British Consulate under UK law.

After the postal vote, they decided to marry under Australian law instead.

We have been engaged for two years and we have been planning this for a long time, it wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment wedding. It is a small wedding, we have 65 guests coming – a lot of people are coming from interstate.”

The pair got engaged two years ago on top of the Eiffel Tower.