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Isle court OKs
1st adoptions by
lesbians, group says

In all three cases, one partner
was a biological parent

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Star-Bulletin staff and wire reports

On the heels of court rulings allowing state's first lesbian adoptions, a coalition of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered activists has unveiled a new agenda for the 2001 legislature.

The coalition held a news conference yesterday to announce that a Hawaii court has recognized the rights of three lesbian couples as same-sex parents.

Skip Burns, spokesman for the new Civil Unions-Civil Rights Movement, said Hawaii is the ninth state whose courts have recognized equal parental rights for lesbian or gay couples.

He said he doubts the rulings by Family Court Judge John Bryant Jr. will help lesbian or gay couples adopt children who are not biological offspring of either partner. In all three cases, one of the women was the child's biological mother.

But Rod Powell, co-chairman of the coalition, said his group wants to expand Hawaii's laws to provide more rights for and less discrimination against non-heterosexuals.

Powell said the coalition hopes to expand on the rights won through the Hawaii reciprocal beneficiaries law.

The group will hold a march around Oahu next month to raise awareness of the issue, he said.

"We truly believe our politicians aren't going to make moral decisions without increasing the moral pressure," he said.

The group's plans already have provoked a reaction from Mike Gabbard, chairman of the Alliance for Traditional Marriage and Values, who said the civil rights call was another attempt to legalize same-sex marriage.

"Homosexual activists are still trying to legalize same-sex marriage by calling it another name, 'civil unions,'" Gabbard said.

"The people of Hawaii will not let these extremists force their values and same-sex marriage down our throats," he said.

In response, Powell said Gabbard was trying to oppress a legitimate call for civil rights.

"We are not trying to oppress them; we are trying to stop them from oppressing us," Powell said.