Aloha Kakou!
O Hanaloa keia.
I have been thinking a lot lately about the US occupation in Iraq and what I can/should do about it. I used to attend every protest or action I could, feeling that even if itʻs only a few of us, we need to speak out in the face of such atrocities. Maybe we can reach some, or somebody, someone who maybe can touch someone else, and so on.
Thatʻs how it was for me a week before the US began bombing Iraq in ʻ91. Possibly the most influential political event in my life was a protest of one: a lone, elderly local Japanese man standing on the side of the road in the middle of Wahiawa holding a homemade sign which read something like, "Please, Mr. Bush, not again".
Even though I was on the clock, I stashed my government vehicle and went back to talk to this guy. Basically, what he told me was that he had seen so many "just" wars that he "just" simply didnʻt buy it anymore. He said he learned in his long life that wars only benefited those few that had the resources to wage them. He told me that it was the financiers of the wars who profit from them, not those who fight and die in them. This old man put a human face on the reports from around the world that Iʻd seen of thousands who were protesting the looming war.
Although these reports helped me realize that there was a movement outside of Hawai`i against the war, they were still only reports. They got me thinking, but they didnʻt move me to action. It wasnʻt until I actually got out of my truck and had a chance to listen to this man directly that I was finally moved to action.
Yeah, maybe my first action was nothing to brag about (I made a bunch of signs which I left in my trunk, and went to my favorite bar and debated everyone about the coming war), but it was the start of a new life, a life dedicated to taking action, some kind of action, any kind of action that could somehow benefit humanity. That may sound corny or trite to some, or maybe even to many, but that old Kepani man changed my life. He helped to me to transition from an entitlement mentality to a service mentality. He was the hermit come down from the mountain to guide me back up so I could have a look of my own, so maybe I could see as well. He was "Da Huli" for me, the big turn.
It was that very turn in my life that lead me not only to the Peace/anti-war movement, but more specifically, to the Hawaiian Movement. And it was the Hawaiian Movement which eventually lead me to the heiau where my first son was born, which turned out to be the place where my direct ancestors had birthed their children over a century before. It was this turn that eventually lead me to Pu`ukoholā and on to Kumu Lakeʻs oli class where Iʻd meet my future wife and mother of three more of my children. It was this same turn that lead me to the lo`i, to the Palace, to Makua, to Honokohauiki, to Aha`ino, and other places. It was this turn that brought me home.
But alas, I have somehow drifted away from the very movement that lead me to so many beautiful places, so many beautiful people. My growing guilt over my inaction has finally coalesced into a more meaningful feeling of duty and obligation. We live in one world, on one planet. Race, religion and politics mean little to the starving child. Can I continue to work for a free Hawai`i without fighting for a free Iraq, while Iraqis continue to suffer and die under the occupation of the very power we protest?
Hawaiians are in bad shape, the worst in fact of any demographic here in Hawai`i. But even with that said, can we even comprehend the scope of the ongoing Iraqi struggle? Can we even fathom the hardship they endure on a daily basis at the hands of the US? I know I canʻt. And so, I thought maybe I need to share my feelings with others again, as I did a few years back. Maybe if I ask the right people the right questions, I can make my way back to the core, the center of the movement. You see, I have a theory that there is a cosmic axis that connects all just causes, all efforts for humanity. I believe that this axis of rotation so to speak, is like an axle of a car, and that all efforts to further life and better humanity will collectively turn that axle. Our collective will is the engine and our collective action is its fuel.
Iʻve heard internationalists scoff at nationalists for being provincial and short=sighted, and Iʻve heard local activists criticize the internationalists for being disconnected at the ground level. I think theyʻre both right. I think we need to recognize when weʻre turning the same axle. In fact, I believe that we must actively and passionately support a free Iraq if we are to have any hope of a free Hawai`i. And so I ask these questions in hope of gaining a better understanding of whatʻs been done, whatʻs being done, what can be done, and of course, what should be done by Hawaiian nationals and our various organizations. Me ka `oia`i`o....
What can Hawaiian Nationals do to assist our brothers and sisters of Iraq in their ongoing struggle against the unwarranted attacks and hostile occupation by the United States military?
Are there any organized efforts by Hawaiian activists or organizations to counter, protest, and/or expose the continuing "war on terror" centered in Iraq?
Should Hawaiians organize events/activities in collaboration with "national" or international efforts to end U.S. occupation in Iraq?
Could the Hawaiian Movement benefit from organized and collaborative resistance to U.S. occupation in Iraq?
What do you think? Any mana`o will be greatly appreciated. Ho`opāpā definitely welcome!
Aloha
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I visited a website tonight that details the civilian bodycount in Iraq. In light of a quiet 5 year anniversary to the war, I think it is important to try to understand the effects of a war that was launched with the dubious intention of helping people. A John Hopkins study says that a civilian is killed every 3 minutes in Iraq. Their study estimated that about 600,000 civilians were killed for the period of March 2003 to July 2006. The Iraq Body Count predicts that 2 civilians are killed every hour and they estimate that between 82,000 and 90,000 civilians have been killed since the war began in 2003. What is most tragic to me is that these studies list the innocent casualties of people who WOULD NOT HAVE DIED had the US occupation not occured.
Hanaloa poses some excellent questions here. For me, I think that awareness is one of the first steps. War is not just about the warriors. It concerns EVERYONE. And the tragedy is that NO ONE is spared from the violence of war.
The website iragbodycount.org has many suggestions on how to use their information. It`s worth taking a look.
Aloha
Pono Kealoha > Malia HelelaMarch 31, 2008 at 10:07pm
We need to understand the "this sickness" that is whats behind this Drive to World Control= NEW WORLD ORDER = MANIFEST DESTINY =W.A.S.P.= PAPAL BULLS
The post-9/11 U.S. military build-up (i.e. the Striker Brigade) are directly linked to the war in Iraq. Thus, Hawaiian Nationalism should definitely organize events/activities in collaboration with other groups to end U.S. occupation in Iraq, for the reconsolidation of neocolonialism (both physical and mental) are enacted throughout the Pacific.
It is only through coalition building that a free Hawai'i will be made possible and this needs to occur alongside all projects that are against colonialism, violence, war, racism and economic injustice.
Of course, this all sounds nice in theory, but putting it into practice, is another story. I think what really needs to happen is an interrogation of ourselves and an assessment of the real stakes involved in not speaking out against U.S. imperialism where it manifests -- indigenous peoples around the world have always been the first to die in war and we owe it to our kupuna to link up with one another.
Replies
Hanaloa poses some excellent questions here. For me, I think that awareness is one of the first steps. War is not just about the warriors. It concerns EVERYONE. And the tragedy is that NO ONE is spared from the violence of war.
The website iragbodycount.org has many suggestions on how to use their information. It`s worth taking a look.
Aloha
CLICK HERE
ONLY USA HAS OVER 1800 BASES OVER OUR WORLD, THE DRIVING FORCE OF USA IS TO: CONTROL , ACQUIRE and DESTROY, THEIR WARRIORS { CIA } the Hidden army.
The post-9/11 U.S. military build-up (i.e. the Striker Brigade) are directly linked to the war in Iraq. Thus, Hawaiian Nationalism should definitely organize events/activities in collaboration with other groups to end U.S. occupation in Iraq, for the reconsolidation of neocolonialism (both physical and mental) are enacted throughout the Pacific.
It is only through coalition building that a free Hawai'i will be made possible and this needs to occur alongside all projects that are against colonialism, violence, war, racism and economic injustice.
Of course, this all sounds nice in theory, but putting it into practice, is another story. I think what really needs to happen is an interrogation of ourselves and an assessment of the real stakes involved in not speaking out against U.S. imperialism where it manifests -- indigenous peoples around the world have always been the first to die in war and we owe it to our kupuna to link up with one another.
i've gone to some ralleys too.
911 was an inside job, just like Pearlharbor..
just thought i'd let you know your not alone.
Pono