Ke Alakaʻi o ka Lāhui: The leaders of the Nation
On January 16, 1893 the day *before* the overthrow of the Hawaiian nation, the newspapers carried the news of a great citizens meeting held at 2pm just beyond the palace grounds, in front of the "new music hall." The citizens were meeting to discuss the future of the nation. The Queen, just days before (Jan. 14) had prorogued the legislature and according to the Hawaiian language newspaper, Ka Leo o Ka Lahui, had left their ears resounding with the following speech,
The Queen's Voice
The Queen's Voice
This past Saturday afternoon, the voice of the Sovereign of Hawaii, Liliuololoku in her
sacredness, was heard announcing such:
"To my loyal citizens, I am presenting here before you that I am now ready to announce a new constitution for my kingdom that I know shall be passed successfully, but there will be obstacles. So, I command you all, my loving people, to return with good hopes, and do not be jealous and angry-hearted. For in these days ahead, I will proclaim a new constitution." (Translated by graduate students - HUINA)
Now we people belonging to the lāhui are hearing that on Nov. 30 will come to a close an election for delegates to a constitutional convention, whose only outcome is seemingly to constitute a Native Hawaiian governing entity to speak for all Hawaiians. Those who see themselves as the new "alakaʻi o ka lahui," not the delegates elect, but those who are engineering this process----are here to create an entity so that it can be prepared for federal recognition.
These alakaʻi----do not have the support of the people, but working behind the scenes ma Wakinekona D.C., me ke kani ʻole hoʻi o ka lākou leo, me ka nānā ʻole hoʻi iā mākou alo a he alo, ke neʻe aʻe lākou i mua me ka ʻae ʻole hoʻi o ka lāhui. Ua kamaʻāina hoʻi lākou i ka pono o ka lāhui, me ka hoʻolohe ʻole i kā mākou ʻōlelo? He malu anei hoʻi ka hopena no ka poʻe ilihune? A pehea hoʻi ka ʻāina? E hoʻi nō ka lāhui i ka ʻāina?
These questions arise out of concern. A lot of people are now promoting themselves to be "elected" as leaders of the lāhui, others are tossing together yet another "Native Hawaiian Leadership" initiative for Hawaiian people that is focused on furthering American ways of governance. People are staying in their boxes. Political Science is not Hawaiian Studies is not History is not Language. We need to come out of our departments and remember who and what we work for. Interdisciplinarity will be the gift we can give to future generations. We need coursework and degree programs that provide already intelligent, smart, seeking people with the skills they need to be good citizens, to care for others. To be the malu first for the people.
Why are we building institutional constructs that continue to separate leadership training from language, history and culture? Why are all the "experts" not talking about loina, or speaking in our language? I am not trying to pretend that colonialism did not do harm to our people in these areas. Nor am I saying that Hawaiians who speak Hawaiian are better Hawaiians. But to continue to build up from English only practice & American style governance is to turn our backs on the leo o ko kākou kupuna, is to make history and loina irrelevant to governing and leadership.
I am also saying that we need to learn again who we are. Clearly we are ready to lead for ourselves again. But the "Hawaiian" we know as culture has been watered down to a few buzz words: kuleana, pono, mālama, kiaʻi. And we make up things that have no resonance in spoken word, history or language---and call that "our culture." We are the inheritors of the largest stronghold of papers in any native language in the U.S and the Pacific. If you think that proposition---to learn again who we are--makes us fake, then you can light the match and burn down the archive. It holds nothing of value for the future, for ourselves or our children.
"To my loyal citizens, I am presenting here before you that I am now ready to announce a new constitution for my kingdom that I know shall be passed successfully, but there will be obstacles. So, I command you all, my loving people, to return with good hopes, and do not be jealous and angry-hearted. For in these days ahead, I will proclaim a new constitution." (Translated by graduate students - HUINA)
Now we people belonging to the lāhui are hearing that on Nov. 30 will come to a close an election for delegates to a constitutional convention, whose only outcome is seemingly to constitute a Native Hawaiian governing entity to speak for all Hawaiians. Those who see themselves as the new "alakaʻi o ka lahui," not the delegates elect, but those who are engineering this process----are here to create an entity so that it can be prepared for federal recognition.
These alakaʻi----do not have the support of the people, but working behind the scenes ma Wakinekona D.C., me ke kani ʻole hoʻi o ka lākou leo, me ka nānā ʻole hoʻi iā mākou alo a he alo, ke neʻe aʻe lākou i mua me ka ʻae ʻole hoʻi o ka lāhui. Ua kamaʻāina hoʻi lākou i ka pono o ka lāhui, me ka hoʻolohe ʻole i kā mākou ʻōlelo? He malu anei hoʻi ka hopena no ka poʻe ilihune? A pehea hoʻi ka ʻāina? E hoʻi nō ka lāhui i ka ʻāina?
These questions arise out of concern. A lot of people are now promoting themselves to be "elected" as leaders of the lāhui, others are tossing together yet another "Native Hawaiian Leadership" initiative for Hawaiian people that is focused on furthering American ways of governance. People are staying in their boxes. Political Science is not Hawaiian Studies is not History is not Language. We need to come out of our departments and remember who and what we work for. Interdisciplinarity will be the gift we can give to future generations. We need coursework and degree programs that provide already intelligent, smart, seeking people with the skills they need to be good citizens, to care for others. To be the malu first for the people.
Why are we building institutional constructs that continue to separate leadership training from language, history and culture? Why are all the "experts" not talking about loina, or speaking in our language? I am not trying to pretend that colonialism did not do harm to our people in these areas. Nor am I saying that Hawaiians who speak Hawaiian are better Hawaiians. But to continue to build up from English only practice & American style governance is to turn our backs on the leo o ko kākou kupuna, is to make history and loina irrelevant to governing and leadership.
I am also saying that we need to learn again who we are. Clearly we are ready to lead for ourselves again. But the "Hawaiian" we know as culture has been watered down to a few buzz words: kuleana, pono, mālama, kiaʻi. And we make up things that have no resonance in spoken word, history or language---and call that "our culture." We are the inheritors of the largest stronghold of papers in any native language in the U.S and the Pacific. If you think that proposition---to learn again who we are--makes us fake, then you can light the match and burn down the archive. It holds nothing of value for the future, for ourselves or our children.
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