The marriage equality advocate highlights the hypocrisy between television and politics.

Former president of the Australian Medical Association and marriage equality advocate Dr Kerryn Phelps has taken a public stand against Nine’s premiere of the second season of Married At First Sight.

In a Facebook post she wrote, “Tonight viewers have the glorious choice of Married at First Sight and Seven Year Switch on free-to-air television. What a bloody insult to those of us in committed long term same-sex marriages who are not recognised under Australian law.”

Many have voiced the view that both shows trivialise marriage. Couples in Married, At First Sight, meet their future spouse on the altar. In a time when same-sex couples are not legally allowed to marry in Australia, the programs highlight the irony of the government pursuing a plebiscite for marriage equality.

Phelps’ statement went on to say, “What a disgusting affront to our children who are told by elected senators and right-wing buffoons that our families are not ‘worthy of legal equality. Yet here is one surreality television series showing just how ridiculously easy it is for two strangers to attain legal married status in Australia… and another showing couples in long term relationships ‘doing a switch’ for the cameras.”

Phelps married her wife legally in 2011 in New York but is still fighting for marriage equality to be recognised in Australia.

She concluded her statement by highlighting how none of the conservative politicians speaking out against marriage equality has said anything about these television programs.

“Not a peep from Bernardi, Abetz, Christensen et al. Seems all you need to qualify for marriage in their books is an anatomically different set of genitals. I guess it would be too much to hope that viewers would turn off these gawkfests in protest.”

Phelps’ status has been shared over 4000 times on Facebook.