Carl Robert Katter (born 12 January 1978) is a member of the
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...
(ALP) and was that party's candidate for the seat of
Higgins for the
2016 federal election.
Katter is also known for having been involved in the push for
LGBT rights
Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality.
Notably, , 33 ...
during his political career.
Early years and background
Carl Katter was born in Brisbane, Queensland, and grew up in the north of the state including
Charters Towers
Charters Towers is a rural town in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It is by road south-west from Townsville on the Flinders Highway. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the town boomed as the rich gold deposits under ...
. His parents were federal MP
Bob Katter Sr. and Joy Katter, and he is a member of a pioneering Queensland family.
Katter came out as gay at the age of 18. Growing up gay in rural North Queensland, he felt he often experienced negative attitudes from some of those in his community that existed towards
LGBT
' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT term is a ...
people at the time.
Bob Katter Sr, Carl's father, who died when Carl was 12 years old, was a member of the Australian Parliament representing the federal electorate of Kennedy. The younger Katter was heavily influenced by his father's labour and trade unionist politics, and by his father's belief in equality for people of all races.
Activism
In August 2011,
Bob Katter Jr, Katter's half-brother and member of
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
representing the seat of
Kennedy
Kennedy may refer to:
People
* John F. Kennedy (1917–1963), 35th president of the United States
* John Kennedy (Louisiana politician), (born 1951), US Senator from Louisiana
* Kennedy (surname), a family name (including a list of persons with t ...
, like his father before him, appeared at a right wing Christian rally at the Great Hall in
Parliament House and decried same-sex marriage.
Carl reportedly watched on television as his half-brother mocked same-sex marriage and suggested that it "deserves to be laughed at and ridiculed."
Deciding publicly to come out regarding his own homosexuality, Katter joined the push for the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Australia.
He approached
GetUp!
GetUp! is an independent progressive Australian political activist group. It was launched in August 2005 to encourage Internet activism in Australia, though it has increasingly engaged in offline community organising.
GetUp is an independent ...
, an independent Australian grass-roots community advocacy organisation, and with their help produced an online video message to counter his brother's comments. In a television interview with
George Negus
George Edward Negus AM (born 13 March 1942) is an Australian journalist, author, television and radio presenter specialising in international affairs. He was a pioneer of Australian TV journalism, first appearing on the ABC’s groundbreaking T ...
, Katter criticized his brother's remarks, saying that "it's hurtful, it's dangerous, and it's really inappropriate."
Katter has stated that he believes that it is better to combat his brother's views and educate rather than attack his brother on a personal level. He holds the work that his brother has done for the Kennedy electorate and elsewhere in high regard.
Recognition
In 2011, Katter was included in ''
The Age
''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
s Top 100 most influential Melburnians.
Engagement
Katter was a guest speaker at the
Metropolitan Community Church
The Metropolitan Community Church (MCC), also known as the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (UFMCC), is an international LGBT-affirming mainline Protestant Christian denomination. There are 222 member congregations in 37 ...
's 2011 annual Christmas event, hosted by
Justice Michael Kirby, where he gave a speech about marriage equality.
Political career
Katter was the Labor candidate for Higgins for the 2016 Federal Election. He won 15% of the vote.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Katter, Carl Robert
1978 births
Australian people of Irish descent
Australian people of Lebanese descent
Gay politicians
Australian LGBT politicians
Australian LGBT rights activists
People from Brisbane
People from Melbourne
People from Mount Isa
Living people
21st-century LGBT people