First of all, as a Native Hawaiian, I am excited at the renewed interest in Native Hawaiian sovereignty! It’s always been there; with the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom we’ve been silenced for too long while denationalized and colonized by the United States of America forcing us to give up our lands, our values, our language, our identity! To this day, there is no peace treaty between the USA and the Hawaiian Kingdom. The U.S. government has tried to erase our history and the war crimes they’ve committed all out of greed. I feel everything the U.S. government “touches and takes” they destroy for profit and gain. (Hawai‘i wouldn’t be the first.) I would love to see Hawai‘i regain its sovereignty and restore the Hawaiian Kingdom back to its original state.
– Kaoiwi Kurosu
I find the renewed interest in Native Hawaiian sovereignty to be unsurprising. Before this moment, there have already been conversations regarding this matter. As we stand today, the Native Hawaiian community is a part of the state of Hawai‘i’s population. This being so, their interests and values should be considered when making decisions that impact them. In this case, our government is not listening to its people. I understand how that can make the Native Hawaiian community feel invalidated. While I am not sure that Native Hawaiian sovereignty is the answer, I do think the desire for it makes sense given the situation.
– Molly Boggs
I think that Hawaiians should have control over their land since they were the first inhabitants of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiian sovereignty is important these days especially with the Mauna Kea situation since it would seem like Hawaiians don’t control their lands and are being arrested from the actions they take to protest. Their actions towards sovereignty may be misunderstood since what they really want is control over their sacred land.
– Gabriel Pascual
I think it is great the Native Hawaiian people are deciding to take a stand to our government. While growing up, I learned so much about the Native Hawaiian culture on how the white men have taken so much from us. And it won’t stop until they get everything they want. Being Hawaiian, I don’t want to see my culture die. I know quite a few people who went up to the Mauna and they shared their experience on how amazing it was and they could really feel the love and mana coming from the people. I hope to go up there to be one with my culture.
– Lisharay Souza
The renewed interest in Native Hawaiian sovereignty is rather interesting. But also at the same time, I find it slightly concerning. With the current state of our country, we are the most divided we’ve ever been. With people pointing fingers at one another trying to push off the blame or call the other the bad buy, it’s very concerning. We shouldn’t be at each other’s throats. We should be working together towards a common goal and to find ways to be good to one another.
– Connor Wilson
Renewing sovereignty would be of great interest to the Hawai‘i community. There has been a lot lost up to our time. This would allow Hawaiians to regain the knowledge and history. Our generation nowadays have a lack of knowledge about our history, ancestors, genealogy and resources we had in the old days. Gaining all of our traditions will teach many of us who don’t understand our culture to be able to learn about who were are and where were come from.
– Jana Aquino
I think it’s a good thing. It’s bringing people back together. It’s a great way for people to learn about the culture and for others to learn where they came from.
– Melica Woodhead