Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 33, Number 7, 1 July 2016 — Letters written in Hawaiian banned at Arizona prison [ARTICLE]

Letters written in Hawaiian banned at Arizona prison

Submitted by the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation Arthur Vinhaca is a native Hawaiian man currently incarcerated thousands of miles away from his homeland in an Arizona prison. His mo'opuna and nieee, young Hawaiians and students receiving their educations in Hawaiian immersion schools, have been writing to Arthur in Hawaiian. These letters offer him a great opportunity to engage in his culture with family members despite being currently separated. Unfortunately, however, the Department of Puhlie Safety for the State of Hawai'i and the forprofit prison system known as the Corrections Corporation of America have been enforcing their English-only mail policy to prohibit Arthur and other prisoners from receiving letters written to them in the Native Hawaiian language ('ōlelo Hawai'i). Several such letters addressed to Arthur have been confiscated. For Arthur, this is a sad and constant reminder of how similar his current situation is to that of his ancestors, who were prohibited by law to write in and speak their native tongue. "I remember when we were forbidden lf om speaking Hawaiian at school when I was growing up," Arthur said. "Now, Hawaiian is an official language and it is still being banned."

Arthur continued, "It is especially wrong this time because the prison allows inmates to use other languages, like Spanish." On June 2, 2016, the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation filed a lawsuit on behalf of Vinhaca, asking a state court judge to strike down a discriminatory English-only correspondence policy that wrongfully prevents families from eommunicating in the Hawaiian language with prisoners in any DPS prison, including Saguaro Correctional Center in Arizona. The Hawaiian language is one of the state's two official languages. Moreover, traditional and customary practices, like communicating in the Hawaiian language, are protected by the state constitution. Sharla Manley, Arthur Vinhaca's attomey, noted, "Because 'ōlelo Hawai'i was in danger of becoming a dead language like Latin, the State of Hawai'i amended its constitution to protect andrevive the language. The prison's English-only policies run afoul of these important safeguards for the revitalization of this language." Ms. Manley also noted that Arthur's grandmother, Katherine Kalaulahauole Nakaula, along with other kumu, played an integral role in the revival of ancient hula and chants. The regressive English-only mail policy impacts families who rely on mail to communicate with men SEE HAWAIIAN LETTERS ON PAGE 19

imprisoned at Saguaro. Although in-person visits are permitted, it is difficult and costly for all family members to travel from Hawai'i to Arizona to visit their loved ones. And while phone calls are permitted, they are also costly. As a result, written correspondence has heeome the primary means by whieh prisoners and their families communicate with eaeh other. ■

HAWAIIAN LETTERS Continued from page 11