Hawaii Senate Passes Civil Unions

Hawaii Bill wrote: The amendment about the faulty date did NOT get passed, it is still in the bill and may become the excuse the House or the Governor uses to NOT move the bill foward. If HRC got this wrong, shame on them. If the Advocate got it wrong...even worse. Check your facts before you dispense "news". Response: Both HRC and the Advocate did get their facts straight. What passed out of the Hawaii Senate last week was not HB444 HD1 (House Draft 1). If you recall, on 5/7/09, HD1 was pulled from the Senate JGO committee to the full Senate floor where it was promptly amended into SD1. The amended SD1 is what passed out of the Hawaii Senate on 1/22/2010. The second amendment attempt would have changed the effective date. If that was successful, then the bill would have been transformed into SD2 (Senate Draft 2), but that amendment failed 10-15.

Have you heard we have gay marriage in California! Oh, no they took that away. But there gonna get gay marriage in New York! Oh, no that's not gonna happen. But it'll happen in New Jersey! Oh, no not happening there either! But we have it in Maine! Oh, no they took that away too. But we might get domestic partnerships in Hawaii! If the Dems can get it to the GOP governor's desk and she signs it. CRUMBS, GLORIOUS CRUMBS! OH JOY! THANK YOU SO EFFING MUCH! YIPPEE! But, oh no probably not gonna happen. Oh well, maybe next time, or the next time, or the next time. Or maybe it's all a bunch of bullsh*t and these people are playing games with our lives. I'm tired of getting my hopes up on a "sure thing" which somehow always just disintegrates in front of my eyes. Sorry, but I won't get too excited until it happens, if ever.

Every journey begins with a single step. It may not be perfect or satisfying, however HB444 is a step in the right direction. After waiting so many years it is nice to see the tide finally changing here, it would have been great if immediately after the Hawai‘i Supreme Court issued their landmark decision in Baehr vs Lewin (1993) that the Legislature enacted equal marriage rights but that was not to be. Eventually history will right this wrong and there will finally be true equality. I am proud of our State flag; it is a symbol of our unique history, culture and government. Criticizing its inclusion is rather petty and unnecessary, the beach did not pass the bill - one chamber of the Legislature did. And yes, shame on the Advocate for posting such an error filled news article. They really should have an editor double check the facts before publishing inaccurate information.

The amendment about the faulty date did NOT get passed, it is still in the bill and may become the excuse the House or the Governor uses to NOT move the bill foward. If HRC got this wrong, shame on them. If the Advocate got it wrong...even worse. Check your facts before you dispense "news".

My uncles live on Oahu and have been together for about 50 years now. One was in the military the other is a native. Because of the military and the influences of the Mormon Church (and other religions too) HI, partially due to its size becomes incredibly polar. What is interesting about the proposed law is that the civil unions are extended to heterosexuals as well, which isn’t what a gay or lesbian relationship is about. We're not just living together. In that way it’s dismissive, insulting and discriminatory. Like so many others, I too fear our opponents will bring up our struggle just to strike at it and “save their people.” This looks like it was just timing. With HI missing budget dollars, they should think about the revenue they could generate on tourism and licenses. Go for full marriage. Get over it. It's going to happen. Get on board now.

Hawaii is where the whole marriage equality movement started. It got the kibosh there, and like dominoes, many other states, fearful that they might have to consider a 'mo as good as themselves, started passing state constitutional amendments defining marriage as between a man and a woman. But also keep in mind the missionary influence in Hawaii. Just like in Africa and anywhere else that was subjected to European imperialism, the missionaries followed the "good" white men and forced the conversion of the indigenous population to follow their ridiculous desert-born laws. Nowadays we call them evangelical christians, but they are cut from the same cloth, and their goal is to make sure that no one can be free to be themselves. And they are trying their hardest to make sure that even civil unions will not be recognized in Hawaii.

. . . which would have retroactively enacted civil unions, of the legislation failed to garner enough votes to pass . . . should be . . .which would have retroactively enacted civil unions, if the legislation failed to garner enough votes to pass . . .

Civil unions offer only some of the benefits of civil marriage. I don't think heterosexual Hawaiins would settle for this second class citizenry and separate and unequal status. I suggest gay/lesbian people in Hawaii marry in one of the US states where it is legal (VT, CT, MA, NH, IA or Washington, DC).

That's because they're NOT marriages. They're civil unions. And they're completely unacceptable - offensive, rather.

Somehow, I still get the feeling that they aren't quite marriages. Are we accepting another similar but not equal bit of crumb again? And to the editor, how about a lovely Hawaiian beach scene next time!