Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 26, Number 7, 1 July 2009 — Kamehameha lei draping, the Akaka Bill and a visit to Washington [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Kamehameha lei draping, the Akaka Bill and a visit to Washington

Aloha nō. Having returned from Washington, D.C„ where several of us were privileged to witness the first lei draping of the Kamehameha statue in Emancipation Hall, and having participated in discussions and planning regarding the Akaka Bill hearing in the House of Representatives, I cannot help but reflect upon the many benefits we have as American citizens. The event was culturally uphfting and the rainbow above the king's head was intriguing while those in attendance and who danced were awesome if only in numbers alone. The talks by Sen. Daniel Akaka and Reps. Mazie Hirono and Eni Faleomavaega were right on, and our Chair, Haunani Apoliona, was most enthusiastic with her words of encouragement to those assembled at the foot of the statue. And thus in the heart of our country's seat of govermnent, we gathered to honor an ieon of Hawai'i and Native Hawaiians, one of our own, a true leader, a man of physical, mental and spiritual strength, one chosen to lead and to succeed. The fact that we were holding the event in a new venue was a feat in and of itself since the statue for decades was hidden behind a pillar and other statues in Statutory Hall in the Capitol. To accomplish the move and then to hold our ceremony at his feet required acts of Congress, literally. But the mixed atmosphere of two nations, the United States and the Hawaiian Kingdom, led one to reflect on not only the occasion but one's allegiance for these two nations. Truly our ancestors, as aptly represented by King Kamehameha, not only as an ali'i but a kanaka maoli who practiced honor and

excelled in all things, have left us with a physieal bond to the past. The highly developed civilization they created surpasses mueh of what we experience today. Their spiiit lingers on and in the land and oeean we know they somehow are present. Thus we, today, do have a tie to this land of ours via the blood, sweat and spirit of those who gave us our identity. On the other hand, by virtue of history, we are now American citizens, living in a free country, able to choose to work hard and see the benefits of our labors or be lazy and suffer the eonsequences of idleness and attitude. Today we are reaping the harvest seeded by an inspired law, the Constitution of the United States, by whieh we ean ensure reconciliation with the U.S. govermnent as Native Hawaiians while enjoying the advantages of U.S. citizenship. There is so mueh promise for the future of Hawaiians if we ean secure what we enjoy and receive today and build from there with the sanction of the nation and state within whieh we live. A Hawaiian governing entity would be mueh better able to address Hawaiian needs and establish a solid Hawaiian presence in Hawai'i and the nation. We as Hawaiians have mueh to prepare for with passage of the Akaka Bill, and it will take a commitment to better our conditions in concert with eaeh other and all others. We have mueh support now; we will need even more when it comes to identifying our citizenship and selecting our leadership, whether corporate, administrative, legislative or other. Our people need education. We need our language. We need our scientists and engineers and doctors. We need housing and jobs and better heahh. We need to strengthen our culture and traditions and to protect our family relationships. We need to produce better and greater leaders who with no maliee aforethought and without guile will dedicate themselves to the betterment of our people and thus to our nation and to our God. ■

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Boyd P. Mossman TrustEE, Maui