LettersHong Kong LGBT rights and the legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Name: Hong Kong gay couple Angus Leung and Scott Adams recall fight for spousal rights and equality
Uploaded: 2020-09-25T23:10:09.000Z
Duration: 3 min 1 s
Description: Hong Kong gay couple Angus Leung and Scott Adams recall fight for spousal rights and equality

The late US Supreme Court justice began by tackling one unfair law at a time and history shows that the feared societal upheaval did not happen

This can easily be how it is in Hong Kong, with the government championing the kind of progress and inclusion that is vital for an international city

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Participants hold up a giant rainbow flag during a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Pride Parade in Hong Kong. Photo: Reuters

Letters

Published: 7:10am, 26 Sep 2020Updated: 7:10am, 26 Sep 2020

While the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg represents a tremendous loss to society of someone who stood for equality, Hong Kong celebrates a small but resounding victory in that regard. We should take the time to observe the similarity between the Notorious R. B. G’s fight for equality between men and women, and that which is taking place in Hong Kong in relation to the legal rights of same-sex couples.

Though the fight for gender equality is not over, clear progress has been achieved in the US on preventing arbitrary discrimination between genders, and any assumption that women should stay at home while men provide has simply become offensive. To achieve this, Ginsburg, long before she became a judge of the almighty US Supreme Court, fought to change the minds of those who believed that centuries of tradition were worth preserving over a so-called risk of upending society.

The reality is that she – and others similarly minded – not only managed to right that wrong, but society witnessed no upheaval either; on the contrary, it evolved.

Aware of the realities that surrounded her, Ginsburg, then a lawyer, opted to progressively bring about change by asking the courts to rule on the illegality of one discriminatory law at a time, by taking on cases in which the unfairness of such laws was in full display. The US government fought her in each instance, but good sense prevailed and the mostly conservative judges found that the government did not have a case to justify such discrimination.

This could easily be the situation in Hong Kong. The recent High Court decision to award Edgar Ng Hon-lam equal inheritance rights for his same-sex partner marks the fourth decision since 2018 to quash provisions or government decisions that discriminate against the LGBT community.

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Hong Kong gay couple Angus Leung and Scott Adams recall fight for spousal rights and equality

A pattern is emerging that seems clear to everyone except the government, which yet again lost an opportunity to show progress and inclusion, the latter being especially important when we are battling broader divisions.