Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 38, Number 10, 1 October 2021 — What We Aspire to Become [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

What We Aspire to Become

V LEO 'ELELE V ^ TRUSTEE MESSAGES "

Over the last several weeks, H a w a i ' i ' s C O V I D - 19 numbers have been elimbing due to the highly infeetious Delta strain of the virus. Where those numbers go from here will depend upon a number of faetors, the most signifieant of whieh will be whether more in

our eommunity are vaeeinated against this virus. Federally approved vaccines are now available whieh substantially reduce the risk of becoming infected and the likelihood of a serious infection or even death if one contracts COVID19. Epidemiologists have been tracking disease trends among various populations and have found that Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islander eommunities are particularly at-risk if they contract the disease. These same statistics also indicate that a substantial number in these communities are not vaccinated. Several weeks ago, Hawaiian leaders were called together to address this situation by Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole after he sent out a kāhea that the west side of O'ahu, a community where many Hawaiians reside, was literally "on fire" after he reviewed recent COVID-19 reports of high rates of infection coinciding with low vaccination rates. The collective intention of those who appeared and answered his eall was to demonstrate that we care about Hawaiians' heahh and wellbeing, to give Hawaiians accurate information about these vaccinations, and to make these vaccinations more readily available to them. While I made a personal ehoiee to heeome vaccinated so that my ehanees of contracting the virus, of having a serious outcome, or of transmitting this virus to my mo'opuna, friends, and loved ones is lessened, my purpose in writing this eolumn is to share what we were reminded of when we gathered together about what our Ali'i

thought and how they responded when facing epidemics and pandemics in their lifetimes. Our Ali'i faced infectious diseases such as typhoid fever, influenza, measles, whooping cough, smallpox, Hansen's disease, and huhonie plague, and, over the years, established puhlie health measures to ensure the survival of Hawaiians. In spite of their efforts, many Hawaiians succumed to these foreign diseases. Yet our Ali'i persevered in do-

ing what they could to keep their citizens healthy. Kamehameha III established a Board of Heahh in 1850, and King Kamehameha IV and Queen Emma established the Queen's Hospital in 1859. In 1881, facing a severe smallpox outbreak, Queen Lili'uokalani issued a quarantine and a restriction on travel whieh saved many lives. In our gathering at the statue of Queen Lili'uokalani, Sen. Keohokalole spoke of our collective past and of our Queen's decision to put the survival of her people first. In an especially poignant moment, Sen. Keohokalole reminded us that in 1893 Queen Lili'uokalani chose to surrender to the United States rather than risk the lives of Hawaiians to resist the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawai'i. Sen. Keohokalole recalled for us that in 1848 there were no recorded live Hawaiian births, and that Queen Lili'uokalani's decision to pursue diplomacy rather than war on that fateful day of Jan. 17, 1893, could well have been because, in her mind, too many Hawaiians had already perished, and that, above all else, her beloved Hawaiian people must survive. That spirit and collective memory remain with us today, where we Hawaiians still celebrate and eommemorate our babies' survival of their first year of life with a traditional baby lū'au. That love, eoneem, and aloha for one another, and for our lāhui, is the essence of who we are, and what we aspire to heeome. Mālama kekahi i kekahi. May we recall the example of our Ali'i, and commit ourselves to care for one another. ■

Carmen "Hulu" Lindsey Chair, Trustee, Maui