Kim Coco Iwamoto | |
---|---|
Commissioner, Hawaii Civil Rights Commission | |
In office 2012–2016 | |
Board of Education Member,Hawaii Board of Education | |
In office 2006–2011 | |
Personal details | |
Born | [1] Kauai,Hawaii,U.S. | May 26,1968
Political party | Democratic |
Residence | Honolulu,Hawaii |
Alma mater | University of New Mexico School of Law (JD,2000) San Francisco State University (BA,1990) Fashion Institute of Technology (AAS,1988) |
Kim Coco Iwamoto (born May 26,1968) is an American politician from Hawaii. She was one of the Democratic primary candidates for the position of Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii in the 2018 election. [2] She previously served as a commissioner on the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission and was elected to serve two terms on the Hawaii Board of Education.
Iwamoto was recognized as a Champion of Change by President Barack Obama in 2013 [3] and in 2018, Newsweek listed her as one of fifty need-to-know pioneers for LGBTQ rights. [4]
Iwamoto was born on the island of Kauai and is of Japanese descent. Her mother went into labor at a private party hosted by Grace Guslander to celebrate the expansion of her Coco Palms Resort,and Iwamoto was then born the next day. Guslander visited Iwamoto's mother in the hospital with a bouquet of flowers,a card,and a request to name Iwamoto “Coco”after her hotel.
Iwamoto attended KaimukīCommunity Christian Pre-School on Oʻahu,Hōkūlani Elementary School,Aliʻiōlani Elementary School,and Hanahauʻoli School. She later attended and graduated from Saint Louis School. She went on to qualify as an Associate of Arts in Merchandising at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Subsequently,she received a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University and a Juris Doctor from the University of New Mexico School of Law.
In 2011,Iwamoto completed Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government as a David Bohnett Foundation LGBTQ Victory Institute Leadership Fellow.
Iwamoto's paternal great-grandparents left Japan to work in the sugar cane plantations of Kauaʻi. Her paternal grandmother met her paternal grandfather at Tip-Top Restaurant on Kauai,where she was working as a cashier. The two used their family cars to start a taxi company,which eventually expanded into a tour company and a rental car company. Iwamoto's father began working for the family business in high school as a car washer,and their collective efforts became known as Roberts Hawaii.
Iwamoto's maternal grandparents left Japan to grow cantaloupe and other produce in Imperial Valley,California. During World War II,Iwamoto's mother and her family were forced into internment camps in Poston,Arizona. Iwamoto's uncles were released from the internment camp to enlist in the military to serve the United States of America. Eventually,the entire family was released and they returned to their farm. When Iwamoto's mother was in high school,she contributed to the family business by taking care of all the bookkeeping.
Shortly after finishing her undergraduate degree,Iwamoto moved back to New York City,where she attended the Fashion Institute of Technology. Using her own life experience as a transgender woman,she spent time volunteering at a local community center,helping youth develop leadership skills. It was here that her passions for helping homeless youth and LGBTQ homeless youth were fostered. Helping youth like the ones she worked with in New York was part of her motivation for attending law school. When she returned to Hawaii,she became a licensed therapeutic foster parent. [5]
Iwamoto recently served as a commissioner on the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission,appointed by Governor Neil Abercrombie to serve a four-year term from 2012 to 2016. She also previously served two terms with the Hawaii Board of Education,Oahu-at-Large,from 2006 to 2011. Her election as a trans woman in November 2006 made her,at that time,the highest-ranking openly transgender elected official in the United States and the first openly transgender official to win statewide office. [6] She was reelected in 2010 with 25% more votes than in 2006. [7]
Iwamoto's other work experiences include serving as Managing Attorney at Volunteer Legal Services Hawaii and facilitating affordable housing through AQuA Rentals,LLC (Affordable Quality Apartment Rentals,LLC). Her volunteer work includes serving on the board of directors for both Kūlia NāMamo and Hawaiʻi People's Fund. [8]
Iwamoto announced her bid for Lieutenant Governor in November 2017. [9] She was endorsed by the Sierra Club of Hawaii, [10] Victory Fund, [11] Maui Time Weekly , [12] Our Revolution Oʻahu Chapter, [13] Unite Here! Local 5, [14] politician Gary Hooser, [15] activist Mari Matsuda, [16] and advocate and teacher Maya Soetoro-Ng, [16] among others. Although she received more than 34,000 votes in the Democratic primary, she lost the party nomination to Senator Josh Green. [17]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Scott Saiki | 2,661 | 51.50 | |
Democratic | Kim Coco Iwamoto | 2,510 | 48.50 | |
Total votes | 5,171 | 100.00 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Scott Saiki | 3,393 | 51.3 | |
Democratic | Kim Coco Iwamoto | 3,226 | 48.7 | |
Total votes | 6,619 | 100 |
Iwamoto was recognized as a Champion of Change by President Barack Obama. [3]
Iwamoto publicly opposed passage of California's Proposition 8, outlawing same-sex marriages in California. She has stated that Proposition 8 reminds her of her mother's internment during World War II and believes the proposition is a violation of essential civil rights, stating, "The country has acknowledged that [internment] as a mistake, to just go with populous fear to oppress a specific group. I think we're going to look back at this kind of oppression as a mistake." [18]
In 2021, Iwamoto joined with local advocates known as the Wai Ola alliance as a plaintiff in a suit against the United States Navy to stop its plan to double line its underground fuel tanks at Red Hill. [19]
The University of Hawaiʻi System is a public college and university system. The system confers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees through three universities, seven community colleges, an employment training center, three university centers, four education centers and various other research facilities distributed across six islands throughout the state of Hawaii in the United States. All schools of the University of Hawaiʻi system are accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The UH system's main administrative offices are located on the property of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in Honolulu CDP.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is an American LGBTQ advocacy group. It is the largest LGBTQ political lobbying organization within the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., the organization focuses on protecting and expanding rights for LGBTQ individuals, including advocating for same-sex marriage, anti-discrimination and hate crimes legislation, and HIV/AIDS advocacy. The organization has a number of legislative initiatives as well as supporting resources for LGBTQ individuals.
The Log Cabin Republicans (LCR) is an organization affiliated with the Republican Party which advocates for equal rights for LGBT+ Americans, by educating the LGBT+ community and Republicans about each other.
Mazie Keiko Hirono is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Hawaii since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Hirono previously served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for Hawaii's 2nd congressional district from 2007 to 2013. Hirono also served as a member of the Hawaii House of Representatives from 1981 to 1995 and as Hawaii's tenth lieutenant governor from 1994 to 2002, under Ben Cayetano. She was the unsuccessful Democratic nominee for governor of Hawaii in 2002, defeated by Republican Linda Lingle in the general election.
The National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) is a nonprofit social equality organization founded in 2003 by transgender activist Mara Keisling in Washington, D.C. The organization works primarily in the areas of policy advocacy and media activism with the aim of advancing the equality of transgender people in the United States. Among other transgender-related issue areas, NCTE focuses on discrimination in employment, access to public accommodations, fair housing, identity documents, hate crimes and violence, criminal justice reform, federal research surveys and the Census, and health care access.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in the United States are among the most advanced in the world, with public opinion and jurisprudence changing significantly since the late 1980s.
Brian Emanuel Schatz is an American educator and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Hawaii, a seat he has held since 2012. A member of the Democratic Party, Schatz served in the Hawaii House of Representatives from 1998 to 2006, representing the 25th legislative district; as the chairman of the Democratic Party of Hawaii from 2008 to 2010; and as the 12th lieutenant governor of Hawaii from 2010 to 2012.
Gary L. Hooser is an American politician who served as a member of the Hawaii State Senate representing Kauaʻi and Niʻihau from 2002 to 2010. He also served on the Kauaʻi County Council for four years before becoming a Senator.
Coco Palms Resort was a resort hotel in Wailuā, Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi, that was noted for its Hollywood connections, Hawaiian-themed weddings, torch lighting ceremonies, destruction by a hurricane, and long-standing land disputes. The resort includes or is near to many culturally significant spots and the sites of some of the most important legends and historical events for Native Hawaiians.
Stanley Ann Dunham was an American anthropologist who specialized in the economic anthropology and rural development of Indonesia. She was the mother of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States.
House Bill 444 was a 2009 bill of the Hawaii State Legislature, passed in April 2010 and vetoed by Governor of Hawaii Linda Lingle, that would have legalized civil unions for couples in the state of Hawaii. Its legislative process was accompanied by controversy over the bill's content and effects and rallies were held by supporters and opponents.
California is seen as one of the most liberal states in the U.S. in regard to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights, which have received nationwide recognition since the 1970s. Same-sex sexual activity has been legal in the state since 1976. Discrimination protections regarding sexual orientation and gender identity or expression were adopted statewide in 2003. Transgender people are also permitted to change their legal gender on official documents without any medical interventions, and mental health providers are prohibited from engaging in conversion therapy on minors.
Esther Puakela Kiaʻāina is a Native Hawaiian politician who currently serves on the Honolulu City Council as its Vice Chair and represents District 3 on the island of Oʻahu. She was elected on November 3, 2020, and began her tenure on January 2, 2021. She is Chair of the Planning and the Economy Committee and Vice Chair of the Committee on Housing, Sustainability, and Health.
Douglas S. Chin is an American attorney and politician who served as the 14th Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii from February to December 2018. A member of the Democratic Party, Chin previously was the 14th Attorney General of Hawaii. On December 18, 2017, Chin announced his intent to run for the U.S. House of Representatives. In February 2018, Chin became Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii after the resignation of Shan Tsutsui and after two others in the line of succession declined the office. In August 2018, he lost the Congressional seat's Democratic nomination to Ed Case.
The 2018 Hawaii gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the Governor of Hawaii and Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii.
The 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Hawaii was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the two U.S. representatives from the state of Hawaii, one from each of the state's two congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections. The state's primary elections were held on August 8, 2020.
Walter Matthew Wilson is an American politician and lawyer from Brookhaven, Georgia who served as the Georgia State Representative for the 80th district. A member of the Democratic Party, he defeated Republican incumbent Meagan Hanson in November 2018. Wilson is only the second openly gay man to be elected to the Georgia legislature.
The National LGBTQ Wall of Honor is a memorial wall in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City, dedicated to LGBTQ "pioneers, trailblazers, and heroes". Located inside the Stonewall Inn, the wall is part of the Stonewall National Monument, the first U.S. National Monument dedicated to the country's LGBTQ rights and history. The first fifty nominees were announced in June 2019, and the wall was unveiled on June 27, 2019, as a part of Stonewall 50 – WorldPride NYC 2019 events. Five honorees will be added annually.
The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Hawaii were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the two U.S. representatives from the state of Hawaii, one from each of the state's two congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections.
Daniel R. Foley is an American retired attorney and judge, who served on the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals from 2000 to 2016. A civil rights attorney known for his support of legalizing same-sex marriage, Foley was appointed by Governor Ben Cayetano in July 2000 and confirmed in August of that year. Known primarily for representing three couples in Baehr v. Miike, the first American case in which gay couples sued a state for the right to marry, Foley was appointed to the Supreme Court of Palau as an Associate Justice in 2011.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)