History Lesson : The Angry Hawaiian

The past couple of days have been an emotional journey.

Saturday, January 17th, 2009 marked the 115th anniversary of the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy. I blog on occasion about the plight of the native Hawaiian. Previous entries include:

Stolen

Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act

To mark the tumbling of the Hawaiian kingdom to a handful of Caucasian businessmen who were descendants of Christian missionaries, Hawaiians rallied together and marched down the streets of Waikiki. The march was also in protest of Hawai'i's Governors decision to sell ceded lands for profit. The ceded lands are the crown lands of the original monarchy. When America dethroned the Hawaiian kingdom, the land, according to U.S. Federal law was placed in the hands of the United States. When Hawai'i became a state, the U.S. transferred title to the State of Hawai'i. Kanaka Maoli, people whose ancestry lead back to the ORIGINAL settlers of this land, pre-dating western contact, have yet to be heard on OUR claim to the ceded lands.

The march was a great spectacle of Hawaiian unity for the tourist crowd to examine. I despise tourism!

For an overview of the overthrow, read this article.

The march had me nostalgic for things I have not experienced in this lifetime. Nostalgic for an easier life, void of heavy taxation (income, SSI, licensing, property, etc). Nostalgic for a life where all I have to worry about is feeding my family and providing shelter. Basic human needs!

Anyway, I was quite pleased to find out that my District Representative, Jessica Wooley, marched in the procession on Saturday. I had previously written my concerns to her regarding the plight of the host culture of Hawai'i and she replied with her view on the issue. I'm happy to say that it is in alignment with my own current beliefs.

It would appear that I am an Angry Hawaiian. I am! Is it hard to understand why I feel so strongly? I would like to see Hawaiians governing themselves, to split completely from State and Federal government. I would like to see those all of the lands of Hawai'i come back into our possession. Hawaiians would unite and form our own government and have full autonomy over our destiny. We would allow the U.S. government and its citizens to exist here and they would lease the lands that they are currently on. The highways would remain, maintained by the State and Federal goverment, and they would lease that from the Hawaiian goverment to generate revenue for the Hawaiian nation. There are just so many possibilities!

Pro Pono

I was quite interested in a story that appeared in the Honolulu Weekly, a free publication that is distributed at the local grocery store. The cover reads, Ho'oponopono A Hawaiian sense of peace, and features a photograph of the last ruling monarch in the Hawaiian islands, Queen Lili'uokalani. Also pictured is Gandhi and Martin Luther King. The Queen fits perfectly among the two very public figures of peace resistance. The picture and the title of the cover story piqued my interest.

The cover picture alluded to the fact that the Queen should rank as one of the great leaders of peaceful resistance. However, the story details the life and thoughts of Reverend Kaleo Patterson, a current Hawaiian activist. The beginning of the editorial runs through a list of credentials for Reverend Patterson, from his education to his protest activity.

The article skims the surface of "ho'oponopono" and barely touches the non-violence resistance of the past. I would have enjoyed reading more on the similarities between Gandhi, Lili'uokalani and MLK, Jr. That topic is the name of a class that Reverend Kaleo Patterson offers at the Center for Indigenous Leadership and Peace Making, housed at the US School of Social Work. I suppose if I'd like to know more on the topic, I have to take the class. **giggles**

Many cultures in the world practice "ho'oponopono" in their own way. I interpret it to be a form of repentance and restitution for the sinner/criminal and the victim. If practiced correctly, it allows the sinner to make restitution for his indiscretions until the victims family can fully forgive and accept the wrong and put it to rest.

The act of restitution and forgiveness is all but absent from our contemporary jail systems. The criminal is never allowed to attempt to clear his name and make restitution to the people he has wronged. He is never called to admit his guilt or to ask for forgiveness. Rather, he "does his time" and is released, only to repeat the behavior that placed him in jail in the first place.

Ho'oponopono would work for both the offender and the offended. The offender seeking for forgiveness is an act of humility that places the offender in a state of submission to the offended. The psychological act of forgiveness by the offended to the offender brings a peace of mind that is so absent in contemporary society. Both pieces are necessary for a successful reconciliation.

The story sparked several thoughts for me and I'm grateful I stumbled upon it. As I attempt to adopt ideals into my life, forgiveness ranks at the top of my most admirable qualities.

Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2007

I said in a recent blog how I HATED the Akaka Bill. In the halls of the U.S. Government, the Akaka Bill in its current version is called The Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2007. I say it again: I HATE THE AKAKA BILL. To give you a brief overview, Senator Akaka introduced the Bill to gain recognition from the United States corporation for Native Hawaiians. According to Senator Akaka and his supporters, the Bill would allow for a Native Hawaiian entity to operate and negotiate with the United States corporation OR Federal Government and also with the legally termed State of Hawaii. The Native Hawaiian entity would operate on behalf of the indigenous peoples of Hawai'i and mirror other indigenous tribes within the borders of the corporate United States. ie Eskimo's in Alaska and hundreds of Native American tribes.

There are several ideas in the Akaka Bill that proponents argue will be beneficial to Hawaiians. Here are a few of them:

The Bill will begin the reconciliation process of the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawai'i.

The Kingdom of Hawaii will gain federal recognition by the corporate United States.

The Bill will force the federal government to provide for Native Hawaiian's in the form of health care, education, employment training, economic development, childrens services, conservation programs.... etc.

If you read the actual bill (click HERE.), it gives a very brief history, in terms of U.S. treaties and Congressional Acts, of the relationship between Hawai'i and the corporate United States. For those not familiar with reading legal documents, pay close attention to the Definitions section of the document. Also, you should reference back to any act mentioned in the Bill. You MUST read the mentioned act in its ENTIRETY. In general, what you see emerging is a mess of legal prose purposely meant to discourage further research. I say, the choice is yours. For me, my mantra is KNOW THE LAW AND BE WELL DISPOSED TO USE IT.

Proponents arguments as mentioned above seem like admirable and noble. On the surface, it would seem that way. Though I could place my own spin on the ENTIRE bill and its verbage, I present my "flip" on just those three items above.

The overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy in 1893 was masterminded by a very small minority of white American male's. Most of them Protestant missionaries or descendants of the people that came to "save the heathen's". Surprised? Their greed and appetite for land and power and the subjugation of the Hawaiian race orchestrated the events that led to the overthrow of Queen Lili'uokalani (pictured above). It has been just over a hundred years since the OVERTHROW and today's politicians purport to be apologetic. They tout that this bill will RECONCILE and heal the indigenous people of Hawai'i. How? How does a legal document create this magnificent change? A legal document cannot change behavior nor erase the wrong-doings of the past.

Why would federal recognition be good for kanaka maoli (Hawaiian people)? I assume that people look to the federal government for the "handouts" that come with federal recognition. As I mentioned above, the Bill wants to introduce federally sponsored health care, education, employment training, etc. You get the picture. I have several issues with this.

1. It is reminiscent of the 10 Pillars or 10 Measures of Communism as outlined by Marx and Engels. Go google it folks! You'll be alarmed at how many current U.S. Laws are in harmony with Communist thought. All our freedoms will be wiped from our memory's if we continue to progress down this road. Anyway... free handouts is not my idea of a self-determined nation.

2. The legal verbage in the actual Bill suggest that kanaka maoli (Hawaiian People) are native American's. NO!!!! Hawaiians are NOT native American. Hawai'i is NOT a part of the continental United States and federal recognition would put kanaka maoli in this category.

3. Finally, what has federal recognition done for the Indian Nations that exist in the United states? Native Americans are the MOST regulated group of people. If that is the model for what this Bill sees for Hawaiians, I don't wany ANY parts of it! THE END.

To tie this all back together, my final conclusion is that the AKAKA Bill smells like a pair of funky socks on a hot summer day after playing 3 hours worth of basketball. Nothing good can come of the funky, ole Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2007. Get rid of it. Kick it out. Kick it WAYYYY out. Get in touch with your congressional representative and ASK them to REJECT this bill. VOTE NO!!! I don't want any parts of it.

I'm out!

Stolen

I despise tourism.

I despise foreign-owned holdings in Hawai'i.

I hate that Hawaiian people are living on the beach while foreign investors over-develop what little land is left... cause the property taxes to SKY-ROCKET and cause the "host culture" to be displaced in our own land.

I hate that Hawaiian "blood" will continue to dissipate.

I hate that the UNITED STATES federal government wants to "qualify" Hawaiians.

I hate the Akaka Bill!!!!!

I despise the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

I hate American "nature conservationists". All they want from Hawai'i is to place more and more "conservation" land INTO the jurisdiction of the United States federal government.

I truly despise the thought of my children and the rest of my posterity having to defend this land and keep the foreigners away from land ownership.

I hate that my generation is lulled by a false sense of security that all will be well -- when OBVIOUSLY our rights, our lands and our freedom is continually being stripped from us. WAKE UP!!!

I hate ignorance!

The other day a caucasian male told me that Hawaiian's should "get over" the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom. It is exactly this attitude that fuels my anger toward foreigners. I'm amazed that he felt he could speak on it.

I hate that a FOREIGN legal system has been imposed on Hawaiian people and my people are ignorant to the ways to navigate through the legal fodder.

I hate that the prisons are filled with Pacific Island people.

I don't want to assimilate into mainstream American culture!!!

I hate that foreigners have NO concept of Hawaiian values and want to impose their own values instead of adopting ours.

Revolution!!! Protest all that is WRONG! Wake up and DO SOMETHING!!! Get involved. Grass Roots is where its at.

I'm done!!!!