Kim Coco Iwamoto
| Kim Coco Iwamoto | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Hawaii Board of Education, Oahu at-large | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2006 |
|
| Preceded by | Randall Yee |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 26, 1968 [1] Kauai, Hawai, U.S. |
| 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 is a former member of the Hawaii Board of Education. Iwamoto was elected in November 2006, making her at that time the highest ranking transgender elected official in the United States and the first transgender official to win statewide office.[2] She was reelected in 2010 with 25% more votes than in 2006.[3]
Iwamoto, a Japanese-American born on the island of Kauai, is a graduate of St. Louis High School. She received an A.A. in Merchandising from the Fashion Institute of Technology, a B.A. in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University, and her J.D. from the University of New Mexico School of Law.
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."[4]
[edit] References
- ^ "ABOUT KIM COCO". 2010. http://kimcoco.com/about/. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
- ^ Associated Press (16 November 2006). "Hawaiian Becomes Highest-Elected Transgender Official". Fox News. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,229937,00.html. Retrieved October 12, 2009.
- ^ "Hawaii Office of Elections: 2010 general election results". http://hawaii.gov/elections/results/2010/general/files/histatewide.pdf.
- ^ Iwamoto is also a transexual, and the process was already done...so she is now a woman permanently,after the fact that she was a man Park, Gene (16 November 2008), Islanders protest gay-marriage ban, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, http://www.starbulletin.com/news/28801116_Islanders_protest_gay-marriage_ban.html#fullstory, retrieved September 28, 2006
[edit] External links
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- American politicians of Japanese descent
- Women in Hawaii politics
- LGBT Asian Americans
- LGBT politicians from the United States
- Living people
- People from Kauai County, Hawaii
- School board members in the United States
- Transgender and transsexual politicians
- Fashion Institute of Technology alumni
- San Francisco State University alumni
- University of New Mexico School of Law alumni
- Asian American women in politics
- Hawaii politician stubs
