I am a 30-year-old woman of liberal upbringing and no particular religious affiliation. Among my peers it is a foregone conclusion that I will be voting "yes" in the upcoming postal plebiscite on same-sex marriage. To admit otherwise would be akin to confessing that I am secretly a homophobe or hate preacher.

The fact is: I will be voting "no".

I do not believe I am homophobic. And I am certainly not a hate preacher. Of course my heart goes out to the Penny Wongs of the world. Sexual orientation has nothing to do with whether one loves their children or is a good parent, and such accusations are intolerable. But my peers seem to believe that my two beliefs are incompatible – to vote "no" to same sex marriage is to hate Penny Wong…

In my experience, the debate in the lead up to this postal plebiscite has been characterised by this sort of prejudice by the "yes" voters and their intolerance of genuine discussion around the issues. Legitimate debate is being drowned out; anyone who whispers a doubt to voting "yes" is immediately shunned.