Liberal activism
leads legislative
transformation
The long era of conservative,
By Richard Borreca
Republican rule gives way to its
opposite: 'A people's revolution'
Star-BulletinHawaii's state Capitol rises out of two great reflecting pools, symbolizing the new island state. When the building went up in 1969, Hawaii was only 10 years old. It was a state in love with the dynamic, fresh ideas of progressive liberal government.
As the Capitol's open courtyard declared Hawaii dramatically different from other states with their old-fashioned domed Capitols, so its tenants wanted their product to be equally new.
By 1970, Hawaii was already making a difference in national government. It was the state of Hawaii that voted first to legalize abortion. It was a strong bill giving women the right, almost unconditionally, to abort unwanted pregnancies. Later the U.S. Supreme Court would follow -- but it was Hawaii that led the way.
At the same time, backed and guided by a strong union lobby, Hawaii was passing the most generous worker's compensation laws in the country. In 1974, it was the first state to adopt mandatory pre-paid health care for workers.
The Democratic-controlled Legislature in Hawaii's early years was liberal, political scientists say, because it was the natural reaction to decades of control by conservative, Republican-dominated pre-statehood rule.
"It was like a people's revolution, but with votes -- not guns," said Ira Rohter, University of Hawaii political scientist.
"Those impulses of those who had been exploited and denied opportunities were not just economic, but social and educational," he said. "So the progressive legislation reflects what happens when downtrodden people create their own community."
It, however, was not a self-perpetuating revolution. Rohter called the present Legislature "a fossil" in comparison to the political leaders of the 1960s.
"What you have are people raised in American values -- consumerism and material goods," he said.
The Democratic Party of the 1960s had at its core Americans of Japanese ancestry, who had gone through World War II or had risen through union struggles on the sugar plantations.
"We have literally come across a full circle of one complete generation," said former Democratic Party organizer Robert Oshiro, who helped secure governorships for John Burns, George Ariyoshi and John Waihee.
"I think the experiences of those of us in the 1954 class -- nobody (today) has had the opportunity to experience, especially the young ones."
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The Honolulu Star-Bulletin is counting down to year 2000 with this special series. Each installment will chronicle important eras in Hawaii's history, featuring a timeline of that particular period. Next installment: November 8. About this Series
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