Courtesy of Hawaii State Archives
With agriculture gaining prominence with annexation,
plantation laborers in the early 20th century helped
achieve the "Big Five's" economic vision.
Kuhio’s vision
for Hawaiians
is clear as everThe challenge is to make far-away
By John Waihee
power brokers see isles' uniqueness
Special to the Star-BulletinHe was a descendant of the kings of Kauai and the cousin of King Kalakaua and Queen Liliuokalani.
Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole was destined to leave his mark in Hawaii's history, but not in the way his ancestors -- his kupuna -- may have predicted. For it was in the same year of his 21st birthday that the monarchy was overthrown.
He joined others in the 1895 counter-revolution, and served a year as a political prisoner for his efforts. Along with most of the Hawaiian leadership, he symbolically declined the invitation to attend the official ceremonies of annexation at Iolani Palace. Kuhio proved and registered his loyalty, but he was also determined to be part of the political decision-making process.
So it was that the heir apparent to Liliuokalani, once charged and convicted of treason to the Republic of Hawaii, would stand for election as the Republican candidate for the delegate seat to the U.S. Congress. Kuhio would not only become the second Delegate to Congress -- he served for 10 two-year terms, elected over and over again by the Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian voters of the Territory.
Kuhio could have become an obscure historical footnote but, as every Hawaiian homesteader knows, his vision for his people lives on today in Hoolehua, Waimanalo, Kekaha, Panaewa and many other communities. The Hawaiian Homes Commission Act remains a living legacy of Kuhio's political foresight.
Lesser known is the fact that Kuhio introduced the first bill asking that Hawaii be admitted to the Union as a state in 1919.
What was Kuhio possibly thinking of? Perhaps he assessed the limits of the political power of the Territory, and sought a more even playing field to argue the well-being and survival of his people.
Kuhio clearly understood that forces beyond his control would forever change the nature and dynamics of how and by whom important decisions that intimately affected his people would be made -- and he was determined not to let others dictate Hawaii's future without a Hawaiian voice.
Eighty years later, and on the threshold of a much more complicated century, Hawaiians again face the reality that political and judicial leaders in faraway Washington, D.C., continue to make decisions that determine our fate. We are, of course, now a full member of the Union. But our issues, our causes, our resources are still so unique that our congressional delegation must regularly argue the specialness of decisions.
In the ongoing case Rice v. Cayetano, a growing number of national groups opposed to affirmative action are filing amicus briefs to join the challenge of the election of trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs by native Hawaiian voters. They are equating this case to a simple case of preference based on ethnicity -- and they couldn't be more wrong or more off the mark in terms of Hawaii's history, our cultures, and our politics.
Like Kuhio, we are faced with the challenge of opening the eyes and ears, minds and hearts of people who still think of us in national political terms. And we are making our arguments in their forum and on their turf. A formidable and risk-filled challenge. This time, our voices will not only include Hawaiians such as Akaka, but names like Cayetano, Inouye, Abercrombie and Mink. I believe Kuhio would say, "This is as it should be."
John D. Waihee was the first elected governor of
native Hawaiian ancestry. He was born in Honokaa, Hawaii, May 19, 1946.
He was a delegate to the state Constitutional Convention in 1978; member
of the state House; lieutenant governor; then Hawaii's governor from 1986-1994.
