Cardinal George Pell. Image: Facebook
NSW Police on Wednesday backed down in their attempt to ban LGBTQI protestors from marching during Cardinal George Pell’s funeral at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney on February 2.
Trigger Warning: This story discusses child sex abuse and homophobia, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.
LGBTQI group Community Action for Rainbow Rights (CARR) is scheduled to hold a march in Sydney CBD coinciding with the funeral on Thursday morning to denounce his legacy of homophobia and opposition to women’s rights. NSW Police on Wednesday made an urgent application before the Supreme Court to stop the protest march from going ahead citing safety concerns.
On Thursday, the court was informed that the police and the organisers had agreed to alter the route of the march.
CARR had initially planned that protestors would march outside St Mary’s Cathedral coinciding with the funeral and requiem mass. However, as per the modified plan, protestors will now be able to walk up to College Street, but will not march alongside St Mary’s Cathedral.
Pleased With Negotiations, Says Police
NSW police confirmed that they had withdrawn their application before the Supreme Court.
“We are pleased that negotiations with protest organisers have resulted in an agreeable outcome for both police and protesters. As such, the proceedings in the NSW Supreme Court have been discontinued by us,” an NSW police spokesperson said in a statement.
“People attending tomorrow – whether for the funeral or the protest – are urged to be respectful of each other and comply with police directions,” the spokesperson added.
‘Police Wanted Us To Be Out Of Sight’
CARR said it was an important victory as the protest will go ahead during the funeral in clear view of the Cathedral.
“No one will be able to attend this funeral without knowing that there’s a protest,” CARR activist Eddie Stephenson told Star Observer.
According to the activist, police initially wanted the protestors to march in the opposite direction, away from the Cathedral. “We’ve now been able to secure what we think is an important victory for everyone’s right to protest. The police initially wanted us to be out of sight of anyone attending the funeral,” Stephenson.
“We’re now going to be in full view of the Cathedral. We’re going to be in view of the attendees – the Peter Duttons, Tony Abbotts and John Howards, who are going there to celebrate a man who once called homosexuality more unhealthy than smoking and abortion more immoral than child sexual abuse,” the activist said.
“We’re going to be able to send a message to all of them that the majority of people in Australia reject homophobia, sexism, child sexual abuse and reject everything that Pell stood for that they want to celebrate”.
Pell Opposed LGBTQI Rights
Today’s work #EveryRibbonHasAVoice pic.twitter.com/hLP0X0aaPJ
— Pauline Pantsdown (@PPantsdown) January 31, 2023
Sydney Catholic Archbishop Anthony Fisher is scheduled to lead a requiem mass at the Cathedral for Pell’s funeral on February 2. Pell, Australia’s highest-ranking Catholic cleric convicted on child abuse charges before he was acquitted, died at the age of 81 in Vatican City on January 10, 2023.
Pell was steadfast in his opposition to LGBTQI rights and same-sex marriage and had a history of making homophobic statements.
In 2018, Pell was convicted of molesting two teenage choirboys at St Patrick’s Cathedral in 1996, when he was archbishop of Melbourne. He spent 13 months in prison while maintaining his innocence. In 2020, the high court acquitted Pell. The high court ruled that the jury that convicted Pell, had not entertained a doubt as to his guilt.
In 2017, a royal commission found that Pell knew of child sexual abuse by Catholic priests in Australia as early as the 1970s but had failed to take any action against them.
Survivors have tied hundreds of coloured ribbons around St Mary’s Cathedral in solidarity with victims and survivors of child sexual abuse.
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