“TWO GOOD, THREE BAD” (兩好三壞), the slogan of the marriage equality advocacy groups, has been frequently heard on the streets of Taiwan ahead of the national referendum on November 24th. This proves a strong contrast to the vocally louder, more aggressive, and well-funded anti-LGBT+ equality group, the Happiness of the Next Generation Alliance (下一代幸福聯盟), which claims to uphold traditional family values and is largely funded by conservative Christian fundamentalist organizations.

While the name of their referendum directly translates to “Love Family Referendum” (愛家公投), the Happiness of the Next Generation Alliance’s actions have proven otherwise, as evident in their aim of preventing others from having a shot at forming a loving family, at any cost. Through nationally televised debates,flyers, and commercials, the Alliance consistently continues to spread fake news from distorting information regarding elementary and secondary school sexual education, the effects of legalizing gay marriage on national health insurance coverage, the national birthrate, and other issues.

Spending evenings and weekends during the past few weeks on the streets of Taipei as part of the Equal Rights Cuties (平權公投小可愛), an entirely volunteer-based group comprised of students, freelancers, retirees, stay-at-home parents, and those already in the workforce dedicated in creating dialogue on the streets around the importance of marriage equality and LGBT+ inclusive education, it has been exhilarating to witness first-hand how many Taiwanese hearts and minds at various ages, family and social backgrounds have been receptive and respectful to different ideas. After long conversations, to my own surprise, many of those who were initially opposed to gay marriage have come around in support of equality. Read more via New Bloom