Hawaii Marriage Session Starts Tomorrow

A reminder via Reuters:

Hawaii, which had a pioneering role in the acceptance of same-sex marriage in the United States two decades ago, could become the 15th state to extend marriage rights to gay couples when state lawmakers meet this week for a special session. Governor Neil Abercrombie, a Democrat, has called the session to start on Monday to debate a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage. "I think Hawaii has always celebrated its sense of Aloha for one another," Abercrombie said in a telephone interview. "This is a question of equity." In 1993, the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled it was discriminatory to deny marriage rights to same-sex couples. But rather than pave the way for a gay marriage law, the ruling prompted a conservative backlash. In 1998, Hawaiian voters approved a constitutional amendment that limited the right to marry to heterosexual couples. The tide has begun to turn under Abercrombie, who was elected in 2010. He signed a same-sex civil unions bill into law in 2011, and has been a vocal proponent of gay marriage since then.

Anti-gay forces will rally at the state capitol tomorrow.