Rodney Croome vividly recalls watching on in horror 13 years ago as parliament explicitly entrenched marriage as between a man and a woman, and banned the recognition of overseas same-sex unions.
On Wednesday, the gay rights campaigner embraced longtime friends and allies and punched the air in joy as the Senate passed a landmark bill legalising same-sex marriage.
The bitter shock and disappointment Mr Croome felt in 2004 was still fresh in his mind.
""It was an awful moment for us - but we never for a second believed that decision reflected the will of the Australian people," he told reporters in Canberra, describing the years of relentless campaigning that followed.
"So many of us fought for so long and so hard to awaken the Australian people to the injustice that had been done in their name - to educate them about the importance of this reform - not just for LGBTI people but for the nation."
For the quietly spoken Tasmanian, this dogged pursuit of same-sex marriage made the overwhelming 'yes' vote in the postal survey and Wednesday's resounding Senate vote all the more satisfying.
"It is the beginning of the process of wiping away that hurt, that shock and that disappointment," Mr Croome said.
"And vindicating the faith that so many tens of thousands of LGBTI people and our friends and our colleagues and our allies have had over the past 13 years."
Mr Croome, who was flanked by fellow campaigners and politicians from all sides of politics in an emotionally-charged press conference, urged the House of Representatives to embrace the legislation next week.
"I'm optimistic it, too, will reflect the will of the Australian people," he said.
