From GLB-NEWS@BROWNVM.BITNET Wed Sep 22 19:48:27 1993 Received: from indsvax1.indstate.edu by judy.indstate.edu (5.61/1.35) id AA08568; Wed, 22 Sep 93 19:48:20 -0500 Resent-From: GLB-NEWS@BROWNVM.BITNET Return-Path: owner-glb-news <@INDYCMS.IUPUI.EDU:owner-glb-news@BROWNVM.BROWN.EDU> Received: from INDSVAX1.INDSTATE.EDU by INDSVAX1.INDSTATE.EDU (PMDF #12545) id <01H39EF5KF2S002YOQ@INDSVAX1.INDSTATE.EDU>; Wed, 22 Sep 1993 19:47 EST Received: from Jnet-DAEMON by INDSVAX1.INDSTATE.EDU (PMDF #12545) id <01H39EDLE65G00004J@INDSVAX1.INDSTATE.EDU>; Wed, 22 Sep 1993 19:45 EST Received: From INDYCMS(LMAIL) by INDSVAX1 with Jnet id 3928 for AVCHOLT@INDSVAX1; Wed, 22 Sep 93 19:45 EST Received: from INDYCMS.IUPUI.EDU (NJE origin LISTSERV@INDYCMS) by INDYCMS.IUPUI.EDU (LMail V1.1b/1.7e) with BSMTP id 0642; Wed, 22 Sep 1993 17:40:38 -0500 Resent-Date: Wed, 22 Sep 1993 19:47 EST Date: Wed, 22 Sep 1993 18:16:57 EDT From: John Flanagan Subject: Hawaii Marriage Update: Public Hearings Sender: Information Repository for News of Interest to GLB* Folk Resent-To: MAHOLT@JUDY.INDSTATE.EDU To: Multiple recipients of list GLB-NEWS Reply-To: John Flanagan Resent-Message-Id: <01H39EF5KF2S002YOQ@INDSVAX1.INDSTATE.EDU> Message-Id: <01H39EDLE65G00004J@INDSVAX1.INDSTATE.EDU> X-Vms-To: IN%"GLB-NEWS@BROWNVM.BITNET" "Multiple recipients of list GLB-NEWS" Status: OR Hi, folks, Here's a long-overdue update on the same-sex marriage case here in Hawai`i. It's kind of a long story, though most of the action has been behind-the-scenes until last week, but I'll try to be as concise as possible. First, on the legal front: as you may recall, the State Supreme Court remanded the case to trial court, ruling that the state will have to show a compelling interest in denying marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Briefs were due by the end of August. The State Attorney General's office requested, and was granted, a two-month extension for filing its brief, so the case will now go (back) to trial court some time in or after November. Prospects for winning the legal case still look good. The Attorney General all but admitted publically this summer that he had no compelling case to make, when he published a proposal that the legislature enact a "Denmark-model" domestic partnership act, which would grant most of the legal rights of marriage, but which would not be called "marriage." Well, this proposal didn't excite the state legislators much, since it would require people to move here in order to gain those rights -- a big concern on a small and overcrowded island. However, one legislator was inspired to hold a series of public hearings on all islands, the first of which was held on Kaua`i last Thursday, and the last of which will be held in Honolulu on 29 October. So, on the second front, the hearings: over 200 people turned out for the hearings on Kaua`i. Testimony ran about 2-to-1 against same-sex marriage. As for the tone of the hearings, to quote one of the Marriage Project people there, "I was not prepared for the high anxiety level and bigotry exhibited at the Kaua`i hearings." (After my boyfriend returned from the hearings, he looked shell-shocked for the next two days.) On the positive side, more people showed up to testify for same-sex marriage than were expected, and the sheer hatefulness and rudeness of the opposition made them look bad. Even one of the legislators who attended was heard to mutter during a cigarette break that she had never seen anything like it, and wasn't sure she could handle it. The hearings were very educational, however, as training for what to expect in the remaining hearings. Our side presented a wider variety of arguments than the other side, and the personal testimony was especially effective. We need, at this point, to boost our numbers, to match the radical fundamentalists voice-for-voice. A variety of measures are due to be proposed to the legislature this January, from the Attorney General's DP proposal to a constitutional amendment to weaken the sex-discrimination clause on which this case is founded. We need to convince the legislators to keep their hands off the case, and not interfere with the Supreme Court's rulings. It would be a disastrous precedent for the legislature to start tinkering with the constitution in order to take away rights anytime the Supreme Court makes a controversial decision. Fortunately, many of the civil rights organizations in the state have come out on our side, and have agreed to testify. The hard part has been getting individuals to testify in public, for understandable reasons. But since personal testimony is so important for an issue like this, outreach is being stepped up to reach those who can lend a sympathetic voice. If you know _anyone_ in Hawai`i, or who has connections to here, who would be willing to testify, _please_ ask them to call the Marriage Project's legislative chair, Bill Wilson at the ACLU, (808) 545-1722, or at the Gay and Lesbian Community Center, (808) 951-7000, for more information about the upcoming hearings. On the third front, related stories: the Kaua`i hearings were filmed by a camera crew from the ABC news show "Day One," with the story on the marriage case scheduled to be aired on 27 October. The footage which was shot included an interview with one of the plaintiffs (including an impromptu attack by a phobe on the beach), and a visit to a Marriage Project strategy meeting. (I'm the quiet one with the terrible camera presence who looked like he was trying to melt into his chair. (Hey, I was sick that day, and wasn't expecting the camera...)) Also scheduled to be aired on "Day One" that day is an interview with Yale historian John Boswell, who is working on a book about the history of same-sex marriages in the Catholic Church. Yes, you read that correctly. I just saw a videotape of a lecture he gave a few years ago on his research-in-progress, and all I can say is, when his book comes out this spring, it is going to be _big_ news. Did you know that same-sex marriages were performed in Rome, with the blessing of the Vatican, until the mid-seventeenth century? Did you know that not only the church, but also the law, recognized same-sex marriages in parts of Europe for most of the Middle Ages? Did you know that the Vatican still has, on its official syllabus of approved rituals, a same-sex marriage ceremony? Keep your eyes peeled for this one... (BTW the Marriage Project is trying to get Boswell to come to Honolulu some time in the next few months.) Let me end on the fourth front, fundraising: the fundraising drive is going well so far, with the latest news being the receipt of a challenge grant from a local donor, who will match donations (over a certain size) from other local donors. So if you know anybody sympathetic in Hawai`i... And even if you don't, and would like to contribute yourself, please do; every cent helps! The address for tax-deductible donations is: Gay and Lesbian Community Center, 1820 University Avenue #8, Honolulu, HI 96822 Contributions should be made payable to GLCC/HERMP. The most important cost is the legal expenses, but money is also needed for public outreach and education for the legislative session coming up. Much mahalo, --John