Culture

Penny Wong’s Reaction To The Yes Victory Will Make You Cry Happy Tears

by Sophie Giles  15 November 2017
Penny Wong

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Senator Penny Wong’s emotional reaction to the Yes victory in the marriage equality postal survey is resonating with people across the nation today, as it reveals the raw reality of the entire marriage equality/postal survey ordeal: it’s not just political, it’s personal.

The moment it was announced that the Yes vote had officially won the marriage equality survey was, for many, overwhelming. The photos and footage of Wong breaking into tears at the announcement of the Yes victory have been shared across the internet today as a pretty fitting encapsulation of the feelings of the entire LGBTIQ+ community.

Wong was the first openly gay woman in federal Parliament and the first openly gay member of cabinet, and while she is known for her usually steely demeanour, the emotionally charged nature of today’s announcement made separating her political and private lives pretty much impossible.

The images of Wong taking in the news are powerful, and watching her break down is a beautiful, emotional experience in itself.

It’s important that we fully appreciate why it is that Penny Wong’s tearful reaction is resonating so widely with the Australian LGBTIQ+ community and its supporters. It’s raw, it’s vulnerable and it represents how the emotional turmoil of this whole postal survey and marriage equality debate ordeal have made people feel today.

The LGBTIQ+ community never had the luxury of being detached from this decision that the entire nation was asked to make. They could not ‘opt out’ of feeling impassioned about the result, or ‘opt out’ of feeling the full weight of Australia’s homophobic population and their vitriol. It’s a battle that the community has been fighting long before the government’s ludicrous postal survey was actually given the go ahead. Opting out of the emotional distress of the marriage equality debate is a privilege not granted to those who it directly affects, and the Yes victory was no small victory.

So, Penny Wong’s tearful reaction to the result is packing a punch because it has captured the relief, the suffering, the exhaustion and the absolute joy that is being experienced by the entire LGBTIQ+ community after being put through the absolute hell of this marriage equality debate.

Penny Wong, sorry that you had to experience this private moment under such public scrutiny, but your vulnerability has been a gift to the community.