Hawaii's historical structures destroyed in Maui fires

Lahaina's Front Street looking north

The wildfire that destroyed Lahaina on the Hawaiian island of Maui has claimed 93 lives, making it the most destructive fire in the US in over a century. The death toll is expected to rise as workers comb the charred ruins.

As I scan the video footage and photos of what is left of Lahaina, I search for familiar stores and gathering spots. Only the waves lapping against the sea wall remains the same.

The rest of the Lahaina Town is reduced to ashes and rubble by the fire that ripped through the community  beginning Tuesday, Aug. 8.

President Biden declared Maui fires a national disaster Thursday (Aug. 10), ordering all federal agencies, including the military, to assist firefighting and recovery efforts.

Lahaina is prominent in the history of Hawaii. King Kamehameha I made Lahaina the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1802. 

Much of Hawaii's heritage has been reduced to ashes, including:

• The 200-year-old Waiola Church, Hawaii's first Christian church where some of Hawaii's royalty are buried.

• Lahaina Jodo Mission, which was established in a private house in 1912 to propagate Buddhism in Lahaina. The temple moved to its present location in 1931.

• Na Aikana Cultural Center, which occupies a building that once served as a soup kitchen for plantation workers during an ILWU strike against the Pioneer Mill.

• Pioneer Inn, built in 1901 by George Alan Freeland.

• The Baldwin Home Museum, the oldest home on the island, built between 1834 and 1835 for missionaries Dwight Baldwin and Charlotte Fowler Baldwin.

• The Wo HIng Museum and Cookhouse, The current structure was restored in 1912, but the original building was built in the early 19th century.

• The Old Lahaina Courthouse, which opened in 1860 as a customs house for whaling and trade ships as well as a center for government offices and court functions during the monarchy period.

Miraculously, Maria Lanakila Catholic Church and its rectory are still standing. The church school suffered minor damage. Maria Lanakila, which means Our Lady of Victory, was established in 1846, according to the church’s website. 

Originally consisting of an adobe building with grass hut chapels, the modern stone structure was finished in 1873. The buildings next door to the church were burned down completely.

ASIAN AMERICAN, NATIVE HAWAIIANS

About 40% of Lahaina's year-round population of 13,000 are of Asian descent and 5% was Native Hawaiian. Whites made up about 35% and the next largest group were of mixed racial heritage. 

Filipino Americans make up the largest Asian subgroup in Maui. According to Kit Zulueta Furukawa, director of the Maui Filipino Chamber of Commerce, hundreds of Filipinos are among the 1,000 people still unaccounted for, said Furukawa.

"Filipinos are a significant number of Lahaina’s population. We lost quite a few people, and a lot of our fellow Filipinos lost everything or a considerable amount of their housing and possessions," said Filipino American state Senator Gilbert Keith Agaran.

As of this morning, 89 people have perished in the multiple Maui blazes. Most of the fatalities were found in the three-mile stretch that defined what was downtown Lahaina. 

The number of dead is expected to rise as workers comb through the rubble that was once the home of Hawaiian royalty and has become a bustling tourist hub. 

A curfew will be in place from 10 pm-6 am daily in Historic Lahaina Town and affected areas.

The 150-year old banyan tree is charred (it’s said that if the roots are healthy, it will likely grow back, but it looks burned yet standing).

CURRENT CONDITIONS

The following news updates are courtesy of the Maui Information Guide.

• The road towards Lahaina: Honoapiilani Hwy (30) is closed again.
• The new fire in Ka’anapali is contained. The smaller fire in Haiku is out.
• 80 fatalities – We expect this number to rise dramatically with more search and rescue. So far, it’s the deadliest wildfire in the US since 2018 in California, but it’ll likely exceed it now that we have residents and crews returning to assess damages.
• Hospitals are NOT Overwhelmed – Rumors are circulating that Maui Memorial, Kula Hospital, and Lanai Community Hospital are overwhelmed, which is untrue.  They responded that they have ample capacity.  Do not avoid the ER.
• 100’s of pet fatalities – The fires came so quickly, it’s still unknown how many pets were lost.
• 1,418 people at 6 shelters – Many more have been displaced but are staying with friends and family.
• At least 2,207 structures were affected or completely destroyed. – These numbers will go up as we get a proper count.
• 10’s of thousands have left Maui – Both visitors and residents are leaving for Oahu and the mainland.
• 100’s of businesses burned – And 1000’s will be majorly affected or closed permanently.
• Most schools are still closed – And many businesses across the island have closed in an effort to have employees assist in aid.

Maui and the Big Island have had some terrible fires since Tuesday evening. Even though Lahaina has been the most devastating, keep in mind there are many major fires across Maui (not just the west side). 

 

Lahaina is said to be 85% contained, but remember that it was said to be 100% contained hours before it flared up and destroyed the entire town.

 

Pūlehu/Kihei is said to be 70% contained. 

 Kula containment is at 50% though new flare-ups have been reported, and it seems to be in 2 different areas. 

Both Ka’anapali and Haiku fires are contained/out.  Winds have died down a bit, so helicopters are able to assist with water drops and delivering supplies.

How you can help Maui, click here.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me at Threads.net/eduardodiok, @DioknoEd on Twitter or at the  blog Views From the Edge.

Hirono bill amends Violence Against Women Act to include funding for Native Hawaiians

US Senator Mazie Hirono has been an advocate for Native Hawaiians.

The US Senate unanimously passed legislation  Nov. 16 allowing Native Hawaiian survivors of gender-based violence to access critical programs and resources provided by Congress through the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).

More than two-thirds of sex trafficking victims in Hawaii are Native Hawaiian women and girls, and 37% of reported child sex trafficking cases in Hawaii are Native Hawaiian, according to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. Yet, the nonprofits established to assist these victims have not been able to access federal grants.

"It would likely shock many of my colleagues to learn about the gender-based violence and sex-trafficking numbers in Hawaii," said Sen. Mazie Hirono, who sponsored the legislation that would amend the VAWA to allow agencies to apply for federal funding. "And of sex trafficking survivors in Hawaii—over 70 percent are Native Hawaiian women and girls. But yet, Native Hawaiian organizations cannot actually serve Native Hawaiian women through these grants."

The reauthorization of VAWA—which was signed into law in March, 2022—provides funding to survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, sex-trafficking, dating violence and stalking. Senator Hirono’s legislation amends the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) to ensure Native Hawaiian organizations can actually serve the Native Hawaiian community.

Indigenous women across the country—including Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women — experience disproportionately high levels of sexual violence.

Therefore, VAWA includes Services, Training, Officers Prosecutors (STOP) grants to provide funding for eligible Native-serving nonprofits, including Native Hawaiian organizations, to help combat sexual violence and support survivors. However, because of how the law was written, while Native Hawaiian organizations are able to apply for STOP grant funding, they cannot use the funds to actually serve the Native Hawaiian community. As a result, Native Hawaiian women have been unable to access critical resources included in VAWA.

According to census data, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander groups make up 10.5% of today's Hawaii’s population. However, they constitute the majority of sex trafficking cases. When looking at just child sex trafficking cases, Native Hawaiians represent 37% of victims statewide. 

KITV

Sen. Hirono's bill will allow more aid to Native Hawaiian victims of gender abuse.

Hirono, one of only two Senators of AANHPI descent, has been a strong advocate for the Native Hawaiian community and efforts to combat violence against Native Hawaiians. In August, she pressed FBI Director Christopher Wray to do more to protect the Native Hawaiian community from sexual exploitation at a full Judiciary Committee hearing and emphasized the need for the FBI to include the Native Hawaiian community in its efforts to address the missing and murdered Indigenous people crisis and violence against Native communities. In May, she joined a resolution designating May 5th as National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

Hirono's VAWA amendment goes to the White House where President Biden is expected to sign the bill.

“For decades, Congress has provided funding to organizations that support survivors of gender-based violence through the Violence Against Women Act. This funding is critical to support all women, including Native women who experience disproportionately high levels of sexual violence. However, Native Hawaiian women have been excluded from accessing these much-needed resources,” said Hirono.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

Who is Biden picking for the White House AANhPI Advisory Commission?

Twenty-three leaders in the AANHPI community have been recommended as commissioners to the President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders.

The 23 appointees announced by President Joe BIden Monday represent a wide swath of the AANHPI community coming from cultural, labor, health, business and nonprofit sectors.

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai, co-chairs of the White House Initiative on AANHPI and President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, issued a joint statement following President Joe Biden’s announcement of his intent today to appoint 23 leaders to the Commission:

“As co-chairs of the President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, we offer our sincerest congratulations to the 23 commissioners who have been newly appointed today. They are distinguished leaders and experts from across the country, representing communities and private and public sectors nationwide, representing the diversity of the AA and NHPI populations. 

"We look forward to working together to provide independent recommendations to the President and the Federal government on ways the public, private and non-profit sectors can collaborate to advance equity, justice, and opportunity for AA and NHPI communities.”

"I am pleased to see the President has appointed a group of highly-qualified individuals to be Commissioners," said Rep. Judy Chu, chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus. "Like the AANHPI community, this group of appointees comes from diverse backgrounds, each bringing with them their unique experiences and expertise, all of which reflect the dynamism and vibrancy of our community. I am confident that together, this Commission will help raise the profile and represent the needs and interests of all AANHPI communities nationwide.”

The Commission will advise the President on ways the public, private, and non-profit sectors can work together to advance equity and opportunity for AANHPI communities. The Commission is also charged with advising the President on policies to address anti-Asian xenophobia and violence, ways to build capacity in AA and NHPI communities through federal grantmaking, and policies to address the intersectional barriers that AANHPI women, LGBTQ+ people, and people with disabilities face.

The commission appointees are: 

Amy Agbayani

Dr. Amefil (Amy) Agbayani is an Emeritus Assistant Vice Chancellor for student diversity and equity, University of Hawai’i at Manoa. Agbayani was born in the Philippines and received her education from the University of the Philippines, East West Center and the University of Hawai’i. She is a former chair of the Hawai’i Civil Rights Commission, conducts research on AANHPI in higher education, member of the Patsy T.Mink PAC and The Legal Clinic for immigrant justice Hawai’i.

Teresita Batayola

Teresita Batayola is the President and Chief Executive Officer of International Community Health Services, Washington state’s largest Asian and Pacific Islander non-profit health center providing comprehensive health care to all those who need affordable care, especially immigrants and refugees. Batayola is an advocate for health care access, equity, and addressing social determinants of health. ICHS has received awards for its high quality of care and Batayola has been recognized in the Puget Sound Business Journal’s Award for Outstanding Business & Philanthropic Contributions, Woman of Courage Undaunted from the University of Washington Women’s Center, and the Filipino Women’s Network’s Most Influential Filipino Woman in the World.

Ajay Bhutoria

Ajay Bhutoria is a Silicon Valley technology executive, community leader, speaker, and author that has been recognized for his work. He is a passionate advocate for the South Asian and AAPI communities in the areas of small businesses, educational opportunities, immigration issues, and technological advancement. His expertise in the areas of organizational transformations and change management has supported critical advancements within the AAPI community, and he is committed to the creation of a compassionate and empowering environment for all.

Luisa Blue

Luisa Blue retired from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) in August 2020 after serving as an Executive Vice President for four years, one of the highest ranking AAPI officials in the labor movement. During her term was responsible for the SEIU Asian Pacific Islanders Civic Engagement and Leadership program, a member of the Racial Justice Task Force, chair of the Environmental and Climate Justice Committee, and chair of the Ethical Culture Committee. She served on the SEIU Executive Board prior to her election as Executive Vice President. Luisa continues to be active in the community and serves on the Asian Health Services Community Board, a Trustee on Alameda County Health Systems Board of Trustees, and Vice President of the AAPI Victory Alliance Board. Luisa is the proud grandmother of seven grandchildren.

Kimberly Chang

Kimberly Seu Gin Chang, MD, MPH, born and raised in Honolulu, Hawai`i in a six generation kama`āina family, is a board-certified family physician in Oakland, California, at Asian Health Services, a federally qualified community health center. Dr. Chang has dedicated her 20+ year career to focusing on the health of the underserved AANHPI community, including people vulnerable to and affected by human trafficking and exploitation, developing national clinical and health policy recommendations for this issue. Dr. Chang has received numerous awards, most recently the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health 2020 Emerging Public Health Professional Award and the 2021 UCSF Alumni Humanitarian Service Award. She received her undergraduate degree from Columbia College of Columbia University, her medical degree from the University of Hawai`i, her MPH from Harvard with the Commonwealth Fund Minority Health Policy Fellowship, and her residency training at UCSF. Dr. Chang currently serves as the Vice Speaker of the House for the National Association of Community Health Centers, and as expert faculty for Health Partners on Intimate Partner Violence + Exploitation at Futures Without Violence.

Emily Chen

Emily Chen is Chief of Research at Olshan Realty and manages the Private Wealth Real Estate Services, providing brokerage expertise along with research and consulting capabilities. She co-founded the Olshan Luxury Market Report, a weekly real-time snapshot of the Manhattan residential real estate market, which became the industry standard and revolutionized how the market is analyzed and evaluated. A former National Big Sister of the Year, Chen serves on the board of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America and is on the Executive Committee. Chen is a graduate of Georgetown University and Co-Founder and Executive Producer of Stand Up for Georgetown.

Kerry Doi

A 4th generation Japanese-American born on a Hawaiian plantation, Mr. Kerry Doi has spent his life combatting hate and solidifying his commitment to social and economic justice. For over 46 years, Mr. Doi has dedicated his work to the cause and the community development space through his leadership at Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment (PACE) – one of the nation’s largest Asian-led community development organizations serving 40,000 minority, low income individuals annually through workforce, small business, environmental justice, affordable housing, and early childhood education. He has served on numerous local, state, and national boards including his current appointments as Chair of the CA Community Economic Development Association, Vice Chair and Treasurer of the LA Housing Partnership, and member of the LA County Small Business Commission.

Grace Huang

Grace Huang, J.D., is a Taiwanese-American attorney who has advocated on behalf of the rights of survivors of domestic and sexual violence for almost 30 years as a legal services lawyer, attorney in private practice, and policy advocate. She currently is the Director of Policy at the Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence, where she focuses on federal policy to address the needs of survivors in Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. Ms. Huang serves on the American Bar Association Commission on Domestic & Sexual Violence, on the Washington State Women’s Commission. Ms. Huang also co-chairs the Alliance for Immigrant Survivors, working to address the needs of survivors of gender-based violence in the immigration system.

Victoria Huynh

Victoria Huynh is currently the Senior Vice President of the Center for Pan Asian Community Services, Inc. (CPACS), the largest nonprofit in the Southeast to focus on issues and concerns of AANHPI communities, especially women, children, and families. For more than a decade, Huynh has advocated for equitable language access, promoted local civic engagement, protected immigrant rights, championed cultural competency, and developed vital social service programs within the immigrant and refugee communities in Atlanta, Georgia. Mrs. Huynh’s experiences in her limited English proficient (LEP) Vietnamese Refugee household, fuels her passion for community building, strategic planning, and policy work within immigrant and refugee spaces. She is an MBA candidate and currently serves as consultant, board member, and panelist on various boards influencing state and local funding, nominations, and programs that impact communities of color.

Mia Ives-Rublee

Mia Ives-Rublee, MSW, is currently the Director of the Disability Justice Initiative at the Center for American Progress. She obtained her Master’s in Social Work at University of North Carolina (UNC) Chapel Hill. She was also recognized as one of Glamour Women of the Year in 2017, She the People’s 20 Women of Color in Politics to Watch in 2020, and received the 2019 Distinguished Alumni Award from the UNC School of Social Work. Ives-Rublee works at the intersection of disability, race, and gender, helping promote equity and opportunity for marginalized communities through policy and organizing.

Kamal Kalsi

Dr. Kamal Singh Kalsi, LTC, USAR is an emergency medicine physician from New Jersey that has served in the Army for 20 years and was awarded a Bronze Star medal for his work taking care of hundreds of combat casualties on the front lines in Afghanistan. He has transitioned into the Army reserves, and now serves as a senior advisor for Policy Vets and a Fellow of the Truman National Security Project’s Defense Council. He founded the Sikh American Veterans Alliance (SAVA) in order to promote diversity, religious freedom, and service.

Michelle Kauhane

Michelle Kauhane is the Senior Vice President of Community Grants & Initiatives at Hawaii Community Foundation. Previously, she served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement where she engaged in lending and investment services deploying capital in underserved native Hawaiian communities statewide. Michelle has a background in non-profit management, organizational leadership, community based economic development and public policy advocacy. She has served on numerous local and national boards and currently sits on the Community Advisory Council at the Federal Reserve of San Francisco to offer perspectives on the economic and financial service needs of low- and moderate- income populations in Hawaii. She is a graduate of Gonzaga University.

Daniel Dae Kim

Daniel Dae Kim is an award-winning actor, director and producer. In addition to his series regular roles on TV’s LOST and THE HOT ZONE: ANTHRAX, Kim starred as the King of Siam in Lincoln Center’s Broadway production of the KING AND I. In addition to his numerous credits as an actor, he is developing both film and television projects as a producer with his company, 3AD. His current projects include THE GOOD DOCTOR currently airing on ABC. Recently, he also turned to advocacy, joining the Asian American Foundation, where he serves a Co-Chair of the Advisory Council. Mr. Kim can next be seen as an actor in the live action adaptation of AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER. He currently lives in Hawaii with his family.

Kevin Kim

Kevin D. Kim is a seasoned attorney, entrepreneur, and public servant. He is a co-founder of Abakidz, a mental math program. In public service, Mr. Kim was the first Korean American to win a NYC primary election as a 2009 Democratic nominee for a NYC Council seat, then served as the first Asian American commissioner of the New York State Liquor Authority (SLA), and now serves as the first Korean American Member of the Board of Trustees of the City University of New York (CUNY) where he chairs the Audit Committee. He has served on the boards of the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY), Korean American Association of Greater New York (KAAGNY), American Red Cross – Queens Chapter, Friends of THIRTEEN, International Student Conferences, Inc. (ISC), Korean American Community Foundation (KACF), and the Fordham Law School Voting Rights and Democracy Project (Advisory Board). Mr. Kim received his B.A. and M.A. from Stanford University and his J.D. from Columbia Law School, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar and a member of the Columbia Law Review.

Sarah Min

Sarah Min is an advocate and former media executive. Min promotes the advancement of mission-driven organizations who are transforming how to use technology, media and person-to-person outreach to mobilize people and change perceptions about women and people of color. From 2013-2019, Min was an independent consultant, working with clients such as HBO, Penguin Random House and other nonprofits, Previously, she served as Executive Vice President for, Marketing & Corporate Development for ScrollMotion, an enterprise software company. Min also was the Managing Editor of Vibe and Domino magazines, a director at media company Bertelsmann, as well as President of literary publishing company McSweeney’s. She serves as a director on nonprofit boards, including Color of Change and EMILY’s List, and has been engaged in grassroots organizations, including the Korean American Community Foundation and the Asian American Power Network. Sarah holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BS in journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Simon Pang

Emigrated from Singapore in late 1989, Pang has been in banking industry since 1981. Pang is currently an Executive Vice President and Co-Founder of Royal Business Bank. He is active in community service and was appointed to positions in statewide nonprofit organizations, including California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs, California Highway Patrol Citizens Advisory Board member, Los Angeles County Sheriff Youth Foundation Board member, US-Sino Friendship Association President, US-Sino Aviation Heritage Foundation Honorable Chairman. He has also served as a National Governing Board Member and National Diversity Coalition Advisor with the national nonprofit Asian Pacific Islander American Affairs.

Ai-jen Poo

Ai-jen Poo is an award-winning organizer, author, and a leading voice in the women’s movement. She is the Executive Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Director of Caring Across Generations, Co-Founder of SuperMajority, Co-Host of Sunstorm podcast and a Trustee of the Ford Foundation. Ai-jen is a nationally recognized expert on elder and family care, the future of work, and what’s at stake for women of color. She is the author of the celebrated book, The Age of Dignity: Preparing for the Elder Boom in a Changing America.

Naheed Qureshi

Naheed Qureshi is Head of Policy Partnerships at Instacart. Ms. Qureshi has had an extensive 20-year career in civil rights, including serving as a founding board member and later deputy director of Muslim Advocates and as co-chair of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights Hate Crimes and Bigotry Task Force. Ms. Qureshi started her career in the U.S. Department of Justice Attorney General’s Honors Program and has also worked at the Civil Rights Division in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the City of Los Angeles, and the national legislative office of the ACLU. Ms. Qureshi received a B.A. in political science from the University of Wisconsin and J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center. The daughter of immigrants from Pakistan, she was raised in Wisconsin and is an avid Packers fan.

Raynald Samoa

Dr. Raynald Samoa is an endocrinologist at the City of Hope and his current research projects include a faith-based community-centered diabetes prevention program in the San Gabriel Valley investigating a social-connectedness modified approach. Dr. Samoa served as the Lead for the National Pacific Islander COVID-19 Response Team and has authored several manuscripts describing the impact of COVID-19 on Pacific Islander communities. He has testified to the House of Representative Ways and Means Committee during a session entitled the disproportionate impact of  COVID-19 ON communities of color. He currently is the technical assistance lead for the Healing Association of Pacific Islander Physicians, a professional organization associated with the National Association of Organization of Pacific Islander Organizations.

Sonal Shah

Sonal Shah is a social impact and innovation leader that has launched and led social impact efforts in academia, government, and the private and philanthropic sectors for over 25 years. She is the Founding President of The Asian American Foundation (TAAF), starting the largest philanthropic effort to serve the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. Prior to TAAF, Shah founded and led Georgetown University’s Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation, providing students a first-hand opportunity to work on social impact projects in the public, private, and social sectors. She served as Deputy Assistant to President Obama and created the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation, worked on international development at the Department of Treasury, and led social impact efforts at Google and Goldman Sachs. She serves on the boards of TAAF, Oxfam America, the Century Foundation, and the National Democratic Institute.

Smita Shah

Smita N. Shah is an engineer, entrepreneur, and civic leader serving as President and CEO of Chicago-based SPAAN Tech, Inc, a multi-disciplinary firm with expertise in public and private infrastructure projects including transportation, aviation, and facilities. Shah serves in various roles with the Chicago Plan Commission, M.I.T., the Museum of Science and Industry, After School Matters, Delhi Chicago Sister Cities Program, YPO, the Lincoln Academy of Illinois, and the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago. She is a member of the board of MacLean Fogg Company and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago and the Economic Club of Chicago. Shah earned her Bachelor of Science from Northwestern University, her Master of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering from M.I.T., and a Post Graduate Certificate in Management Studies from Oxford University.

Robert Underwood

Robert A. Underwood is a former Member of Congress representing Guam for 10 years. He is also President Emeritus of the University of Guam and has the distinction of being the longest serving President of the university. He has served the nation as Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus and the founding Chair of the Asian Pacific Islander Scholarship Fund. As a scholar and activist, he has served his region and his people as a passionate advocate for the respect and maintenance of the Chamoru language and the empowerment of the peoples of Micronesia.

KaYing Yang

For more than three decades, KaYing has been a social justice advocate who has built and led community organizing, public policy engagement, and development efforts locally, nationally, and globally. She began her career as a community organizer and executive manager providing social services and advocacy for the protection of refugees and immigrants in Minnesota at the Women’s Association of Hmong and Lao. She then went on to defend and promote immigrant and human rights by serving in a number of organizations including the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, the International Organization for Migration, the International Finance Corporation, and the Coalition of Asian American Leaders in Minnesota. All of her work comes from a deep experience having come to the United States as a Hmong refugee at the age of seven in 1976 where she experienced firsthand the struggles faced by communities experiencing generational trauma and poverty.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

Biden's Indigenous Peoples Day proclamation is history in the making

Native Americans across the nation observed Indigenous Peoples Day instead of Columbus Day.

President Biden is the first U.S. President to proclaim Oct. 11 as Indigenous Peoples Day. He also signed a separate proclamation for Columbus Day.

On Friday, in both proclamations, he sought to walk a thin line to allow Italian Americans to celebrate one of their heroes but also to present American history within the context of today's perspective instead of glorifying Christopher Columbus' voyage in 1492 and the subsequent exploitation and destruction of native civilizations.

In the Columbus Day proclamation, he honored the contributions to America of Italian Americans, who have turned the day into a celebration of all things Italian even though Christopher Columbus' infamous voyage was under the flag of Spain,

RELATED: Christopher Columbus, hero or villan?

In proclaiming Indigenous Peoples Day, Biden fulfilled a campaign pledge to the original inhabitants of the United States.

"In the first week of my Administration, I issued a memorandum reaffirming our Nation’s solemn trust and treaty obligations to American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Nations and directed the heads of executive departments and agencies to engage in regular, meaningful, and robust consultation with Tribal officials," he said in his historic proclamation.

"Our country was conceived on a promise of equality and opportunity for all people — a promise that, despite the extraordinary progress we have made through the years, we have never fully lived up to. That is especially true when it comes to upholding the rights and dignity of the Indigenous people who were here long before colonization of the Americas began," said Biden. 

"For generations, Federal policies systematically sought to assimilate and displace Native people and eradicate Native cultures. Today, we recognize Indigenous peoples’ resilience and strength as well as the immeasurable positive impact that they have made on every aspect of American society."

He tempered the Columbus Day proclamation by reminding the nation of the true impact of arrival of European explorers and settlers on the America's

“Today, we also acknowledge the painful history of wrongs and atrocities that many European explorers inflicted on Tribal Nations and Indigenous communities,” Biden wrote. “It is a measure of our greatness as a Nation that we do not seek to bury these shameful episodes of our past — that we face them honestly, we bring them to the light, and we do all we can to address them,” Biden said.

  

At the same time he honored and acknowledged the contributions of Italian Americans to the United States.

The Indigenous Peoples Day proclamation included American Indians, Alaskan Natives and Native Hawaiians. It continued, "We must never forget the centuries-long campaign of violence, displacement, assimilation, and terror wrought upon Native communities and Tribal Nations throughout our country."

In Hawaii, Discoverers' Day includes honoring the Polynesians who sailed to the island state.

Since the 1990s, a growing number of states have begun replacing Columbus Day with Indigenous People’s Day — a holiday meant to honor the culture and history of Native Americans.

Indigenous Peoples’ Day has grown in popularity, either replacing or being celebrated along with Columbus Day in towns, cities, states and schools across the nation, according to the History Channel. 

In Hawaii, the day is observed as Discoverers' Day, “to honor all discoverers, including Pacific and Polynesian navigators.”

In much of Latin America, Columbus' arrival is known as Dia de la Raza.

With Deb Haaland, the first Native American Secretary of the Interior, by his side, Biden issued his proclamations on the same day the White House announced its plans to restore territory to two sprawling national monuments in Utah that Trump had stripped of protections from mining and fossil fuel interests. One, Bears Ears, is on land that Native American tribes consider sacred.

Native Americans and their supporters demonstrated in front of the White House today (Oct. 11) to protest oil pipelines transversing and endangering their reservations and water resources and to demand action on the climate crisis. Arrests were made when they disobeyed police orders to move on.

Following is Biden's Presidential Proclamation for Indigenous Peoples' Day:

Since time immemorial, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians have built vibrant and diverse cultures — safeguarding land, language, spirit, knowledge, and tradition across the generations. On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, our Nation celebrates the invaluable contributions and resilience of Indigenous peoples, recognizes their inherent sovereignty, and commits to honoring the Federal Government’s trust and treaty obligations to Tribal Nations.

Our country was conceived on a promise of equality and opportunity for all people — a promise that, despite the extraordinary progress we have made through the years, we have never fully lived up to. That is especially true when it comes to upholding the rights and dignity of the Indigenous people who were here long before colonization of the Americas began. For generations, Federal policies systematically sought to assimilate and displace Native people and eradicate Native cultures. Today, we recognize Indigenous peoples’ resilience and strength as well as the immeasurable positive impact that they have made on every aspect of American society. We also recommit to supporting a new, brighter future of promise and equity for Tribal Nations — a future grounded in Tribal sovereignty and respect for the human rights of Indigenous people in the Americas and around the world.

In the first week of my Administration, I issued a memorandum reaffirming our Nation’s solemn trust and treaty obligations to American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Nations and directed the heads of executive departments and agencies to engage in regular, meaningful, and robust consultation with Tribal officials. It is a priority of my Administration to make respect for Tribal sovereignty and self-governance the cornerstone of Federal Indian policy. History demonstrates that Native American people — and our Nation as a whole — are best served when Tribal governments are empowered to lead their communities and when Federal officials listen to and work together with Tribal leaders when formulating Federal policy that affects Tribal Nations.

The contributions that Indigenous peoples have made throughout history — in public service, entrepreneurship, scholarship, the arts, and countless other fields — are integral to our Nation, our culture, and our society. Indigenous peoples have served, and continue to serve, in the United States Armed Forces with distinction and honor — at one of the highest rates of any group — defending our security every day. And Native Americans have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, working essential jobs and carrying us through our gravest moments. Further, in recognition that the pandemic has harmed Indigenous peoples at an alarming and disproportionate rate, Native communities have led the way in connecting people with vaccination, boasting some of the highest rates of any racial or ethnic group.

The Federal Government has a solemn obligation to lift up and invest in the future of Indigenous people and empower Tribal Nations to govern their own communities and make their own decisions. We must never forget the centuries-long campaign of violence, displacement, assimilation, and terror wrought upon Native communities and Tribal Nations throughout our country. Today, we acknowledge the significant sacrifices made by Native peoples to this country — and recognize their many ongoing contributions to our Nation.

On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we honor America’s first inhabitants and the Tribal Nations that continue to thrive today. I encourage everyone to celebrate and recognize the many Indigenous communities and cultures that make up our great country.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim October 11, 2021, as Indigenous Peoples’ Day. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities. I also direct that the flag of the United States be displayed on all public buildings on the appointed day in honor of our diverse history and the Indigenous peoples who contribute to shaping this Nation.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-sixth.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, observations, tips and references, follow me on Twitter @dioknoed for news and views from an AAPI perspective.

Governor meets with Mauna Kea 'protectors'

STATE OF HAWAII

Law enforcement personnel are greeted nose-to-nose, a Native Hawaiian custom, by Mauna Kea 'protectors,'

During a visit to Mauna Kea, Hawaii's Gov. David Ige referred to the 1000 people blocking the road to the top of the dormant volcano as "protectors," not "protesters," a major shift in tone in the controversy over a giant telescope slated to be built on the mountain.

When he visited the kapuna, or elderly, blocking the road, he was given a lei as he rubbed noses in the custom of Native Hawaiians.

The Japanese American governor says both he and Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim understand that the issues underlying the protests are deeper than the telescope and are about "righting the wrongs done to the Hawaiian people going back more than a century."  

Ige is asking Kim to lead efforts to find common ground with protesters blocking the construction of a 30-meter telescope at the summit of the state's tallest mountain.

Native Hawaiians say Mauna Kea is a sacred mountain to them, despite the 13 observatories that are already on the mountain. The giant telescope would dwarf the other observatories. It would occupy a 5-acre site and be 18 stories high.

Mauna Kea, say scientists, is one of the prime locations on the planet for observing space.

Protectors of Mauna Kea have been blocking the road since July 15 to prevent trucks carrying building material for the observatory.

Mauna Kea protests continue vs. giant telescope

Mauna Kea is located on Hawaii, the Big Island.

As officials brace for more protests against the construction of a telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii's governor expressed the desire to avoid the possibility of violence.

Since mid-July, protestors have blocked the road leading up to the telescope's site atop the dormant volcano, Mauna Kea, preventing the delivery of construction material.

Gov. David Ige said that his priority is to keep everyone in the community safe, including the activists at the base of Mauna Kea. The 80 National Guard members on the Big Island since the start of the protests will remain, state officials said.

“We will not be utilizing tear gas, as some of the rumors have been (saying),” Ige said. “We are looking for the best way forward without hurting anyone.”

The only Asian American governor in the US stopped short of removing the State of Emergency, which allows the troops to remove protestors, who claim the site is sacred and is of cultural significance for Native Hawaiians.

The latest to weigh in is Presidential candidate, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, whose district includes  Mauna Kea. In a statement, she said:

"To many Native Hawaiians, kamaʻāina, and malihini alike, Mauna Kea is so much more than a mountain. It's a revered and sacred sanctuary connecting keiki and kupuna to the past, present and future, and where Native Hawaiians practice their customs and traditions.

"The materialistic way that developers and corporations are viewing Mauna Kea — ignoring the spiritual significance and relationship many Native Hawaiians have with the Mauna — is at the heart of the problem.

"It is hypocritical that many TMT proponents speak of their own spiritual quest for knowledge and wisdom, while simultaneously closing their eyes to the spiritual inspiration and significance that Mauna Kea offers — not only to Native Hawaiians but to humanity at large. Spiritual nourishment and inspiration is of much greater and lasting value than anything money can buy.

"It is this spiritual blindness often born out of arrogance or greed that is at the root of the desecration of our precious environment throughout the country and around the world."

More than 1,000 people descended on what they consider sacred Hawaiian land last week to form a blockade to stop the construction of a controversial giant telescope on Mauna Kea.

Police moved in to make  33 arrests, reported KHON. Among the first arrested, were kapuna, or elderly, protestors. All 33 where given citations and released the same day.

“This mountain represents more than just their building that they want to build,” longtime activist Walter Ritte said in a video interview livestreamed by Hawaii News Now, via Twitter on Monday, reported Colorlines. “This mountain represents the last thing they want to take that we will not give them.” Ritte was one of eight people who chained themselves to a grate in the access road at the mountain’s base to block construction.

According to the BBC, the 30 meter telescope (TMT) would be the largest in the world. Mauna Kea is held by the state in trust, supposedly for the benefit of Native Hawaiians.

Protests, led by Native Hawaiians, have dogged the project since it was announced in 2009. Last Oct.  the Supreme Court of Hawaii upheld the building permit granted by the State Board of Land and Natural Resources. Construction was scheduled to begin on July  15 this year.

Gizmodo reports that the protestors have won the support of some 200 astronomers who published an open letter .

“We call upon the astronomy community to recognize the broader historical context of this conflict and to denounce the criminalization of the protectors on Maunakea,” read the letter.

“We came to protect our sacred land,” Hawaii News Now reported that a protester at Mauna Kea said last week during the arrests. “There’s not much more we have left.” There are already thirteen working telescopes at and around the top of Mauna Kea. If TMT is not built on Mauna Kea, there is a backup site in the Canary Islands."

ASAM NEWS CONTRIBUTED TO THIS REPORT

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Kahuku HS graduation has us all cheering

Getting high school students to do anything is a major challenge so its a wonder that Kahuku High School continues to put out out-of-this-world graduation ceremonies involving the entire class singing and choreography.

We've featured this high school before where 60% of the student body is Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. Asians make up only 9%. White students are in the minority with only 18% of the student body.

The pride in being one of these ethnic groups is self-evident in the video. I wish I had gone to this high school. It would have done wonders for my self-esteem during that vulnerable time of my identity-seeking years.

The Senior Medley has become a tradition at Kahuku H.S. and emulated by other Hawaiian high schools. This year's graduation ceremony took place May 23 at their school, located on the non-touristy Northshore of Oahu.

Watch all the way until until the end when the entire graduating class does a haka. 

Congratulations Kahuku graduates!
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Merrie Monarch Fest: Hula dancers preserving Hawaiian culture

SCREEN CAPTURE / YOUTUBE

Taizha Keakealani Hughes-Kaluhiokalan was named Miss Aloha Hula for 2019.

The best hula dancers and hula troupes were named in the Merrie Monarch Festival, an annual competition keeping Native Hawaiian culture alive. 

The dances and chants performed by the competitors are not your parents' hula tourists flock to at the hotel luau's on Waikiki, Kaanapali or Poipu beaches. 

The dance competition was held in late April in Hilo, Hawaii this year and crowned the title of Miss Aloha Hula to Taizha Keakealani Hughes-Kaluhiokalan from the Kalihi-based hula halau (hula school) Halau Hiiakainamakalehua based in Oahu, which has produced three of the last four winners. 

“The energy, the feeling of even walking into the stadium, I could immediately feel just, I could feel my kupuna,” Hughes-Kaluhiokalani said. “I knew they were surrounding me, I knew they were coming out of me. It was a magical, magical feeling.”

Hughes-Kaluhiokalani, 23, danced two styles of hula for the judges, kahiko (traditional) and auna (modern), and was given high marks for her proficiency in olelo Hawaii (Hawaiian language), eventually winning the Hawaiian language award as well. 

The Merrie Monarch festival is the biggest of several hula competitions that help preserve the traditional Hawaiian culture and language, which is seeing a revival in recent years after being banned for decades by Christian missionaries.

Even if you don't understand the language, onlookers can see and feel the enthusiasm and pride of the energetic young dancers as they beautiful dance traditional and modern hula.

Winners were also announced in the group dances for men and women.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Our sincere apologies for the delay in covering this annual dance competition. Views From the Edge was  distracted this year because of political Trump and immigration news, but better late than never, right?

Cyril Pahinui, Crown Prince of Hawaiian slack-key guitar, dies at 68

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CYRIL PAHINUI, 1950-2018

THERE'S NOTHING MORE SOOTHING than Hawaiian slack-key guitar and songs. Like gentle waves lapping on an island beach, the music washes over you softly, massaging away your tensions and worries.

Last week (Nov. 19), Hawaiian guitarist and singer Cyril Pahinui died at the age of 68.
Pahinui, a Grammy-nominated master of slack-key, succumbed to respiratory and kidney failure in Honolulu. Pahinui had been hospitalized since Feb., 2016, over complications related to exposure to Agent Orange during his time serving in Vietnam, his widow, Chelle Pahinui, tells NPR.

Cyril Pahinui, who the Native Arts & Cultures Foundation identifies as Native Hawaiian, was born and raised in Waimanalo, Oahu, far from the glitter and lights of the tourist strip of Waikiki.

It was there where he learned his artform from his father, renowned slack key guitarist Gabby Pahinui. The younger Pahinui turned his gift into a prolific half-century career that included two Grammy nominations, the Gabby Pahinui Waimānalo Kanikapila festival and an enduring influence on later generations of Hawaiian musicians.

Pahinui received the Hawai‘i Academy of Recording Arts Ki Ho‘alu Award in 1997 and again for a second time in 2017. He was given the Hawai’i Academy of Recording Arts Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014.

He was also honored as a 2017 National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellow in September 2017, and was the 2018 recipient of the Rotary Club of West Honolulu’s David Malo Award in October of this year.

Survivors include his wife, Chelle Pahinui, daughters Amber, Andrea, Anne, Carrie, and Elizabeth, 19 grandchildren, his brothers James (“Bla”) and Philip Pahinui, and sisters Margaret Pahinui Puuohau and Madelyn Pahinui Coleman.

Pahinui's final album, made up of recordings from the '90s and titled Marketplace, was recently released. Celebrate the late musician through these songs and performances:

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TGIF FEATURE: Moana to be redubbed in Hawaiian

Disney introduced its first Pacific Islander 'preincess' in Moana.

ASAM NEWS

A HAWAIIAN LANGUAGE version of the Disney hit Moana will be given to every accredited school across Hawaii this Christmas, reports Hawaii News Now.

The University of Hawaii’s Academy for Creative Media worked on the project.

“This was an educational endeavor to encourage students to learn Olelo Hawaii and we are so grateful to our partners at Disney Animation and Disney Character Voices International for making this possible,” Academy for Creative Media Director and Founder, Chris Lee, said.

Auli'i Cfravalho will voice her role as Moana in the Hawaiian version of the animated Moana.

Actress and Native Hawaiian Auliʻi Cravalho reprised her starring role in the Hawaiian remake.

“I am so deeply proud of my Hawaiian roots,” Cravalho said to University of Hawaii News last year.. “To perform the role of Moana, acting and singing in the Hawaiian language, is so deeply humbling and exciting. I can’t wait to work with the talented language experts who will help bring this version to life.”
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Kavanaugh's emails reveals he questions constitutionality of aid to Hawaiians

THIS MORNING (Sept. 6), Senator Mazie Hirono released confidential emails from Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh that opined that government programs targeting Native Hawaiians "as a group" is "of questionable validity under the Constitution" and would be "subject to strict scrutiny."

"I think the testimony needs to make clear that any program targeting Native Hawaiians as a group is subject to strict scrutiny and of questionable validity under the Constitution," Kavanaugh wrote in a 2002 email in response to a Treasury Department official regarding federal assistance in "Indian Country."

READ Brett Kavanaugh's emails about Native Hawaiians.

Though the documents released in Hiriono's tweets were stamped "committee confidential," they were made public earlier by the office of Senate Judicial Committee chair Sen. Chuck Grassley without the confidential markings minutes before Hirono's tweet.

The Judicial Committee is having several days of hearings to decide on whether or not Donald Trump's nominee is qualified to fill a seat on the nine-member Supreme Court bench.

Grassley's office released the additional documents from Kavanaugh's work in the White House on Thursday morning after requests from several committee Democrats yesterday.

Though the emails had previously been labeled "committee confidential," Grassley noted his staff worked through Wednesday night to tackle "last-minute" requests from Democrats to release the documents publicly, according to The Hill.

The senator from Hawaii said at Kavanaugh's hearing that she saw no reason for the paper to be confidential.

“I would defy anyone reading this document to conclude this document should be deemed confidential in any way shape or form,” she said. 

Yesterday (Sept. 5), Kavanaugh's sentiments on assistance to Native Hawaiians, who he doesn't consider to be indegenous people, were revealed under Hirono's grilling. 

By extension, Hirono said, Kavanaugh's positions would also cover the native people in Alaska, the home of Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who Democrats hope will vote against Kavanuaugh.

Earlier documents that were deemed "committee confidential" were released after Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) earlier threatened to go against committee rules that forbade their release. His trove of documents related to Kavanugh's race-related opinions that reflect his positions on affirmative action or racial justice. 

“The fundamental problem in this case is that these DOT (Dept. of Transportation) regulations use a lot of legalisms and disguises to mask what is a naked racial set-aside,” he wrote,

In another email he expressed that for security reasons,t racial profiling might be allowed. 

A 2003 email indicates that Kavanaugh's previous testimony that he would support the precedence set by Roe v. Wade giving women the right to make medical decisions, specifically around abortion.

"I am not sure that all legal scholars refer to Roe v. Wade as the settled law of the land at the Supreme Court level since Court can always overrule its precedent, and three current Justices on the Court would do so," he wrote._______________________________________________________________________________