HCH photo/Patrick Downes
Opponents of the civil unions bill, gathered outside Gov. Linda Lingle’s office on the fifth floor of the state capitol building on July 6, raise their hands in prayer shortly after learning that the governor had vetoed the bill.
Diocese applauds governor’s veto of civil union bill
By Patrick Downes | Hawaii Catholic Herald
Hawaii’s Gov. Linda Lingle announced on July 6 her intention to veto a bill that would have established civil unions in Hawaii, stating that she believed that the legislation was “essentially marriage by another name.” She has long opposed same-sex marriage.
Soon after the announcement, the Hawaii Catholic Conference and the Hawaii Family Forum issued a joint statement praising the governor’s decision. (See page 16 for full statement.)
“We are convinced she has come to the proper and only conclusion that will best serve the people of Hawaii,” the statement said. “Her veto affirms the will of Hawaii citizens.”
A coalition of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender groups issued a news release deploring the veto.
Alan Spector of Equality Hawaii called the governor’s action “political maneuvering.”
“We’re disappointed and outraged that same-sex families will not be treated equally under Hawaii law, but vow to come back and fight this fight another day,” he said.
The bill, HB 444, would have allowed homosexual couples to gain the designation “civil union,” a status identical, except in name, to marriage in Hawaii. It would not affect any federal rights or benefits. The law would also have allowed a heterosexual couple to procure a civil union.
The Hawaii state House of Representatives approved the bill by a 31-20 vote on April 29, the last day of this year’s legislative session. The house would need 34 votes to override a veto.
The state senate approved the bill in January by enough votes to override a veto.
In a statement explaining her action, Gov. Lingle, said that this issue should be settled, not by the legislature, but by a vote of the people.
“I have become convinced that this issue is of such significant societal importance that it deserves to be decided directly by all the people of Hawaii,” she said.
“The subject of this legislation has touched the hearts and minds of our citizens as no other social issue of our day. It would be a mistake to allow a decision of this magnitude to be made by one individual or a small group of elected officials,” the governor said.
The Republican governor, who is Jewish, and not running for reelection, said her decision was not “based on my religious beliefs or on the political impact it might have on me or anyone else of either political party in some future election.”
Gov. Lingle’s lieutenant governor, who is a Catholic and an outspoken critic of HB 444, is running to succeed her.
The Hawaii Catholic Conference, the public policy arm of the Diocese of Honolulu, had worked hand-in-hand with Hawaii Family Forum, an organization representing many Hawaii evangelical Protestant churches to defeat HB 444.
In their statement, they thanked the “thousands of people who took action to express their beliefs and stood strong in support of traditional family values and the definition of marriage as being limited to one man and one woman.”
Honolulu’s Bishop Larry Silva on May 17 had urged Hawaii Catholics to pray for a veto.
The governor waited until the last day possible, July 6, to announce her action. Her alternatives were to sign the bill or to allow it to become law without her signature.
For most of that day, proponents and opponents of the bill awaited her decision in separate gatherings at the state capitol in downtown Honolulu. Pro-HB 444 forces, many wearing multi-colored paper leis representing the spectrum of the rainbow, rallied behind the statue of St. Damien which fronts the building, listening to speeches and recorded music.
An anti-civil union crowd, mostly wearing white shirts and red “I vote” buttons, gathered at the opposite side of the capitol and later in an area on the fifth floor outside the governor’s office.
Gov. Lingle made her announcement in her office shortly after 3 p.m. at an invitation-only news conference. Her voice was also broadcast in the capitol’s open-air atrium, and when it became apparent she was going to veto the bill, loud cheers arose from the HB 444 opponents gathered on the fifth floor, while a few civil union supporters shouted angry denunciations.
The anti-civil union forces, mostly evangelical Christians numbering about 200, continued to celebrate the moment with hugs and songs and prayers.
As the situation subsided, the song “Smile, Though Your Heart Is Aching,” could be heard booming from the loudspeakers of the HB 444 supporters on the ground floor below, as the dwindling number of civil union backers lingered silently in small groups.