Hawaii

News from within the borders of Hawaii and the fight for LGBT equality there. Hawaii recognizes same-sex unions, although marriage equality is banned in its state constitution. Past and present challenges include hate crimes law, transgender rights, adoption, and other rights denied to same-sex couples. Many pundits point to Baehr v. Miike, a 1991 case that contested the state's prohibition of marriage equality that was heard before the Hawaii Supreme Court, as an impetus to the creation of the federal Defense of Marriage Action in 1996.