The lessons of equal marriage we need to relearn

The way in which some activists campaign for their cause makes it difficult to believe they really want the rest of us to change what we do or how we think. Trans-right campaigners who seek to silence the likes of the academic Kathleen Stock and stop debate don’t help in enhancing mutual respect and collective understanding. Likewise, attempts to remove Baroness Falkner from her job as head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission don’t help in achieving an equality legal framework that is fair and respectful of all – which is what most reasonable people want. Indeed, it’s hard to understand why many commercial companies and public services have taken sides of hotly contested political campaigns which – as things stand – are unlikely to make significant change that everyone can support.

If we really want to improve our public discourse that might lead to better things, we don’t have to go far back in time to see there is a different way.