Date: Fri, 8 Dec 1995 22:26:50 -0500
From: PRCenter@aol.com

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News From The:
NATIONAL FREEDOM TO MARRY COALITION

CONTACT:  Jim Key            Chiqui Cartagena
                  213-993-7603    212-807-1700
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HAWAII STATE COMMISSION URGES LEGISLATURE
TO LEGALIZE MARRIAGE FOR SAME-GENDER COUPLES
                  
    - National Freedom to Marry Coalition Hails Historic Step -

     HONOLULU, Dec. 8, 1995 -- In an historic first, a Hawaii state
government-
created commission, specifically charged with studying the freedom to marry
that is
denied same-gender couples, forwarded a report to the state legislature today
recommending Hawaii marriage laws be amended "to allow two people regardless
of
their gender to marry."
     The report by the Hawaii Commission on Sexual Orientation and the Law,
whose members were appointed by the governor, will now go to the state
legislature. 
The commission was created by the legislature in June, 1994, to determine how
best
to address the ways in which same-gender couples are affected by not being
able to
marry.  
     "After months of intense research and witness testimony, a government
body
has finally concluded that there is no legitimate reason for the state to
continue
refusing civil marriage licenses to same-gender couples who want to make the
commitment of marriage," said Rich Tafel of Log Cabin Republicans.  Log Cabin
Republicans is a member of the National Freedom to Marry Coalition, a broad
alliance
of city, state and national gay and non-gay groups across the country.  
     "They looked at all the arguments for and against same-gender marriage
and
concluded it's wrong for government to say 'no' to people saying 'I do,'"
said Tafel.
     The commission was created in response to a landmark lawsuit challenging
the
denial of civil marriage licenses to same-gender couples.  In May, 1993, the
Hawaii
Supreme Court ruled that the "same-gender restriction" on marriage appears to
violate
the state constitution.  The Court held that unless the state can identify a
"compelling"
justification for discriminating, it must stop.  The case, Baehr v. Lewin, is
now before
the lower court, where the couples are represented by co-counsel Dan Foley of
the
Hawaii Equal Rights Marriage Project (HERMP) and Evan Wolfson of Lambda Legal
Defense & Education Fund.  
     "The commission's report further strengthens our court challenge,
clearly
illustrating that the state has no 'compelling' reason to deny same-gender
couples the
freedom to marry," said Tom Ramsey, Co-Chair of HERMP.  "If the legislature
fails to
end the discriminatory restriction on marriage, we're still confident that
the Hawaii
Supreme Court will, through the Baehr v. Lewin Case.  It was less than 30
years ago
that courts took a similar stand, ending the ban on interracial marriage."  
     The landmark report was hailed by leaders of gay and non-gay
organizations
nationwide as a key step in educating the public about how the denial of the
freedom
to marry harms couples and fosters inequality.
     "Many Americans have never thought about marriage in connection with
lesbian
and gay people, or even about the reality that same-gender couples form
families that
need protection and deserve support," said Elizabeth Birch, Executive
Director of the
Human Rights Campaign, a member of the National Freedom to Marry Coalition.
 "The
commission did its homework, and looked at equal marriage rights fairly and
methodically.  We invite the public, judges, and legislators in the rest of
the country to
do the same."
     The commission of seven members, headed by highly-respected former Lt.
Gov. Tom Gill, represented a diverse range of views.  Its report has already
been
editorially endorsed by Hawaii's two leading newspapers.
     The National Freedom to Marry Coalition is a broad association of gay
and non-
gay local, state and national organizations, working to educate the public
and
encourage support for same-gender marriage.
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