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Recognition of Gay and Lesbian Marriage and Pluralism

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Recognition of gay and lesbian marriage and pluralism
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What does pluralism reveal about the recognition of gay and lesbian marriage? What are the strengths and limitations of this theory in understanding the recognition of gay and lesbian marriage?

Power overlaps between interest and political groups and as a result, political decision-making is reached through negotiation and compromise (Manley 1983). Indeed, when examining the progressive debate concerning the legal recognition of same-sex relationships in Australia, the perception that power is bartered through interest groups becomes highly plausible through the lens of classical pluralist theory. There are competing visions of diversity in Australia, and behind the main positions; supportive, neutral, and opposing, there are a multitude of perspectives underlying these umbrella groupings. For some in the community, the concept of gay and lesbian marriage is controversial, and its complexities raise fundamental social, religious, moral and political questions. In analyzing how power has operated in this situation, I will apply classical pluralism to converse sides of the moral argument to reveal how Australian attitudes have changed over time in a progressively consensual political environment. For this issue, the strengths of pluralism lie in its empirical nature; it is an observable and comprehensive view of understanding how power operates in society, with regard to a multitude of perspectives and interest groups. However, further analysis will reveal that while there are many voices in the debate concerning marriage equality, they are not created equally. A form of ‘elite pluralism’ prevails that refutes classical pluralist ideals of diversity. Interestingly, a weakness of classical pluralism is that its end game ultimately fails; the discussion of polarizing topics can lead people to

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