Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 21, Number 10, 1 October 2004 — Naftive nations gather in D.C.; Hawaiians march on Waikīkī [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Naftive nations gather in D.C.; Hawaiians march on Waikīkī

Tribes converge at inauguration of American lndian museum

By Manu Boyd WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Sept. 21, in the eool dawn air where the Potomac River meets the Atlantic Oeean, the Fall Equinox sky was ablaze in fiery hues, shedding symbolic light on a pathway that would mark a new coming of age for indigenous peoples. With generations of ancestral strength and pride, and years of dreaming, planning and attention to detail, thousands prepared spiritually for a coming together - an indigenous march of profound magnitude. In celebration of the long-awaited opening of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), Washington, D.C., and the world witnessed one of the largest gatherings of Native Americans and indigenous peoples in recorded history. The Native Nations Procession See NMAI on page 14

Top: With the Washington Monument in the background, members of the royal societies lead the Hawaiian contingent in the Native Nations Procession that preceded the opening of the National Museum of the American lndian. Below: The Labor Day Kū i ka Pono - Justice for Hawaiians march. Photos: Top, Manu Boyd; below, Sterling Kini Wong

Hawai'i presence is strong at procession of indigenous peoples on the National Mall

NMAI from page 1 marking the NMAI's grand opening drew 30,000 representatives of more than 400 tribal nations and indigenous communities and organizations from throughout the Western Hemisphere, including North, Central and South America and the Pacific. In all, officials say, nearly 80,000 people made their way to the grassy stretch between the Washington Monument and the U.S. Capitol Building, and the event drew thousands more throughout the weeklong First Americans Festival. Among the throngs of procession participants was a contingent of Kānaka Maoli from Hawai'i and the continent who marched with energetic dignity, greeted with shouts of "aloha" from fellow native brothers and sisters and other well-wishers who lined the route through the packed National Mall. Vibrant signs with images of Hawaiian flags, the islands and the phrase "'O Hawai'i i Ku'u Kulāiwi Aloha (Hawai'i is my native, ancestral homeland) were held high, as voices chanted such familiar mele as "I Kū Mau Mau," "E Iho Ana 'O Luna" and "'O Wākea." Sam Ka'ai's pū (eoneh shell) pierced the din, underscoring Hawai'i's strong presence. Marchers in the Hawai'i delegation included Hawaiian royal societies, representatives of the Hōkūle'a and Hawai'iloa voyaging canoes, Hālau Lōkahi Hawaiian charter school, the State Council of Hawaiian Homesteaders Association, Hui Kāko'o 'Āina Ho'opulapula, the Office o: Hawaiian Affairs, hālau hula from the Washingtoi area, and many others - all in honor of th auspicious grand opening of the first museum in tl nation's capital to focus on the Weste Hemisphere's First People. "We have felt the cruel and destructive edge colonialism - but we are not its victims," said NM

Director W. Richard West Jr. during the opening ceremonies, dressed in the full regalia of his Oklahoma Cheyenne and Arapaho roots. "This museum represents the truly great contributions of Native Americans," he said. "God bless this monument," said Peru President Alejandero Toledo, the first Peruvian-Indian leader elected democratically in 500 years as a Spanish-colonized country. "The museum's location on the National Mall L ' ''^k1 adjacent the Capitol Building is a magk- ^ nificent tribute to the nation's growing K. ^ * understanding of the importance and Y diversity of the native people of the K. Americas," he said. Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell, chairL A ' man of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, addressed the throngs at opening k | i ceremonies, also in full traditional regalia. "My colleague Sen. Dan Inouye onee said, 'Washington, D.C., is a city of monuments, yet there is no monument to the native people of this land,"" said Campbell. ' ' .ijy "Opening today is that monument. This A museum is also a monument to the more than 190,000 Native American Indian veterans who served in the armed forces with I honor and courage." Introduced by Campbell as a "warrior chief among warriors," Inouye graciously [ acknowledged praises for his role in the NMAI's birth. "I am humbled to have been asked to be a part of this ceremony," he said. "In the words of my constituents, from the ancestors of the people of Hawai'i, 'aloha."" Among other Hawai'i highlights during the 'U' Wh weekl°ng fcstivities were the opening of the Nā Mea Makamae Exhibition featuring Hawaiian cultural treasures at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History; a Hawaiian i Service of Blessing for Native Peoples at the Calvary Baptist Church under the leadership of Native Hawaiian Pastor Amy Butlor; the premiere of "The Hawaiians - Reflecting Spirit" by Hawai'i filmmaker Edgy Lee (see story on page 13); and the overwhelming presence of our kūpuna kahiko - our ancestors - through the living cultural expressions of Nalani Kanaka'ole, Pualani Kanahele, Calvin and Kawai Hoe, Nālani 01ds, Ledward Ka'apana, Noenoelani Zuttermeister, Rubelite Kawena Johnson, Edith McKinzie and many more. ■