Taken directly from the Hawaiiankingdom.info blog
Posted by Scott:
http://www.HawaiianKingdom.info/C1295638618/E20070816095617/index.html
Advertiser columnist Lee Cataluna reflects on the Kau Inoa t-shirts lawsuit:
"If Bill Burgess and his hui want Kau Inoa shirts so bad, they can have mine.
I have three or four in a drawer somewhere... I don't think I even kau'd my inoa on the registry.
[...]
You could wear a Kau Inoa shirt, get your name on the list and your life would not change at all. If anyone thinks being Native Hawaiian means suddenly your life is easy or charmed, he couldn't be more mistaken. You still have to register your car, pay taxes, wait in line at the post office and separate your glass from your plastic at the recycling center. You have to do all those things PLUS watch them sell beaches that your father once knew to build their hotels, to paraphrase that old song of lament. You have to do all those things plus navigate all the assumptions, good and bad, people carry about you because you're Hawaiian. You have to do all those things and try to decide if and when to get mad, how mad to get, what to do about it and when to not even bother. It's no pa'ina.
When being Hawaiian has an appreciable advantage in day-to-day life, maybe Burgess and his lot will have a point. But the way things are, being Hawaiian doesn't carry many advantages that those types could appreciate."
BTW, according to the traffic logs, "kau inoa" is by far the most common search string used to reach this site, and my post from about a year and a half ago about the Kau Inoa t-shirts ("They stole my kingdom and all I got was this lousy t-shirt!"), continues to be one of the top entry pages for this site.
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Kau Inoa is one model of achieving sovereignty for Native Hawaiians. This is closely tied to the Federal Recognition Bill proposed by Sen. Akaka that would give Native Hawaiians a status similar to what many Native American Tribes have.
It is my opinion that this does not address the issue of the loss of the Kingdom of Hawaii. It may address certain concerns among Native Hawaiians with the US Government, but not the issue of the loss of an independent nation. Hawaii was an independent kingdom whose citizenry was was multi-ethnic, multi-racial and multi-religious. The Akaka Bill and Kau Inoa sadly do not address the this fact. Of course Native Hawaiians will lead the charge for the restoration of the Hawaiian Government, but we should never forget that so many of our ancestors were naturalized citizens. They and their descendants also lost their nation.
My own jumbled opinion.
http://www.HawaiianKingdom.info/C1295638618/E20070816095617/index.html
Advertiser columnist Lee Cataluna reflects on the Kau Inoa t-shirts lawsuit:
"If Bill Burgess and his hui want Kau Inoa shirts so bad, they can have mine.
I have three or four in a drawer somewhere... I don't think I even kau'd my inoa on the registry.
[...]
You could wear a Kau Inoa shirt, get your name on the list and your life would not change at all. If anyone thinks being Native Hawaiian means suddenly your life is easy or charmed, he couldn't be more mistaken. You still have to register your car, pay taxes, wait in line at the post office and separate your glass from your plastic at the recycling center. You have to do all those things PLUS watch them sell beaches that your father once knew to build their hotels, to paraphrase that old song of lament. You have to do all those things plus navigate all the assumptions, good and bad, people carry about you because you're Hawaiian. You have to do all those things and try to decide if and when to get mad, how mad to get, what to do about it and when to not even bother. It's no pa'ina.
When being Hawaiian has an appreciable advantage in day-to-day life, maybe Burgess and his lot will have a point. But the way things are, being Hawaiian doesn't carry many advantages that those types could appreciate."
BTW, according to the traffic logs, "kau inoa" is by far the most common search string used to reach this site, and my post from about a year and a half ago about the Kau Inoa t-shirts ("They stole my kingdom and all I got was this lousy t-shirt!"), continues to be one of the top entry pages for this site.
*******************************************************************
Kau Inoa is one model of achieving sovereignty for Native Hawaiians. This is closely tied to the Federal Recognition Bill proposed by Sen. Akaka that would give Native Hawaiians a status similar to what many Native American Tribes have.
It is my opinion that this does not address the issue of the loss of the Kingdom of Hawaii. It may address certain concerns among Native Hawaiians with the US Government, but not the issue of the loss of an independent nation. Hawaii was an independent kingdom whose citizenry was was multi-ethnic, multi-racial and multi-religious. The Akaka Bill and Kau Inoa sadly do not address the this fact. Of course Native Hawaiians will lead the charge for the restoration of the Hawaiian Government, but we should never forget that so many of our ancestors were naturalized citizens. They and their descendants also lost their nation.
My own jumbled opinion.