Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 1, Number 7, 1 September 1984 — OHA Takes Native Hawaiian Issues to Democratie Parley [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

OHA Takes Native Hawaiian Issues to Democratie Parley

By Wendy Roylo H ee Planning and Development Officer Amid the myriad issues that vied lor the attention of Democratic delegates. OHA was able to bring the message of native Hawaiian reparations to the National Democratic Convention in San Francisco July 16 19. Trustee Rockne Freitas, an alternate delegate, and 1 were ahle to meet with numerous other delegates and media people from across the country to inform them of native Hawaiian issues. The job of bringing this issue bcforethe Party nationally began in June when the Democratic Platform Committee, headed by Geraldine Ferraro. held hearings in Washington, D.C. on what would be included in the Party platform for the next four years. OHA. with the assistance of Odetta Fujimori, a delegate to the Nationai Democratic Convention and member of the National Educational Association Executive Committee, presented testimony before the Platform Committee on reparations, urging that Congress "acknowledge the illegal and immoral actions of the United States in the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1 893, and to indicate its commitment to grant restitution for the losses and damages suffered by native Hawaiians as a result of those wrongful actions." At that time. the Democratic Nationa! Committee indicated that this year's Democratic Platform vvould haveto beas non-controversial as possible to assure a unified party that was important to enhanee the chances of winning the White House in November. As a result, the Hawaiian reparation issue was not included in the national platform, although it had been adopted by the State Democratic Party at its State Convention. lt was clear that the time was not right. We cou!d, however, at least lay the ground work for eventual inclusion of the reparations issue into the party platform by using our time at the National Convention to educate party members nationally of Hawaiian history and the injustice of the overthrow in 1893 for whieh reparations is sought.

Oui objective, then. v\as to dissemin;ite information. We were ahle to accomplish this task by arranging an open house at the Bellevue Hotel to show a video production about Hawaiian culture and history and why native Hawaiians were seeking reparations. Press releases were issued to Bay area newspapers, and invitations were extended to delegates and media people covering the Convention. Although our open hou.se competed with manv other activities ;tt the Convention. we were able to draw a crowd o( approximately 100 delegates and media people to discuss vvith them the reparations issue. A reporter from the San Francisco Examiner, a popular Bay area daily newspaper, spoke with us and wrote an article on minorities in Hawaii and discussed the struggles of native Hawaiians in their own homeland. The article, published the second day of the convention, July 17, was we!l-timed since delegates from across the country weresure to have access to this storv in the loeal San Francisco newspaper. In addition, important contacts were made with officers and members of the Asian Pacific Caucus (APC), a newly created organization within the Democratic National Committee to address issues of eoneei n to Americans of Asian and Pacific island ancestry. Tom Hsieh, Chairman of APC, and Lorna Kakesako, APC Vice-Chair and a Hawaii resident, believe that APC ean bean important and powerful vehicle to use for native Hawaiian issues. The Japanese Amenean Citizens League and the National Coa!ition for Redress/ Reparations (for Japanese interned during World War II) were also contacted for support in native Hawaiian issues. Persona! contacts with officers of these groups were positve and encouraging. The road to success in seeking reparations will be long and difficult, but when it happens, OHA's participation in the National Democratic Convention may be viewed as one of the many steps taken to ensure the building of a strong national network of support necessary to move Congress into action.

Among Hawaii's delegation to the Democratic National C onvention were these frontliners, from left to right, Russell K. ()kata, e\ecutive director, Hawaii Government Employees Association; C hris Pahlo, attorney and certified puhlie accountant: Karen Horita, Hawaiian Homes C ommissioner and Housing and (Ommunity Development Specialist with the Honolulu agency;Judy Kim Seu,asecretary in the State Department of C'ommerce and C onsumer Affairs; Su/anne Peterson, State Deputy Agriculture Director; VVendy Roylo Hee, OHA Planning and Development Officer: Odetta Kealalio Fujimori. special education teacher and a member of the National l.ducation Association E\ecutive C ommittee.