Although I live in Hawaii, I try not to blog about it too much because, well, how interesting can one person make lomi salmon and poi recipes? But it’s more than that. Hawaii, to most mainlanders, is a “tropical paradise,” a perma-vacation, an idyllic place to visit when you’ve saved up your vacation days. That is not what it is to those of us who live here. Yes, it is lovely. Yes, it is special in a sense that words cannot begin to describe. But Hawaii is also a very sad place.

You see, by the time my son’s son has his first child, there will be no more Hawaiians. There are precious few pure Hawaiians now as it is, and even those hapa-Hawaiians (half) have lost the lore of their fathers.

Much of that lore was ripped from their grasp. For years after Hawaii became a U.S. territory, Hawaiians were forbidden to dance hula. They were not allowed to speak their native tongue, and they were beaten at school if they did. That’s right: beaten. Their kumu (teacher) and kahuna (wise men) were prohibited from passing on their traditions, and the ancient religions were outlawed. Their lands, those owned by the royalty and bequeathed to native Hawaiians when the monarchy was overthrown by haole (white) businessmen, did not pass to the Hawaiians as intended. They were taken, and the Hawaiians were disenfranchised from not only their lands but from their own culture as well.

I have not written about life in Hawaii because the truth of this place is not what most people want to hear. It is a sad history, how these islands came to become part of the United States. And I consider it one of our more shameful passages, one which we still don’t talk about. This is not a chapter that happened hundreds of years ago, so long that everyone who was affected by the act has long since passed.

Hawaii became a state in 1959. Whether the islands should become a state was put to a vote. Ninety-percent of the voters favored admission to the Union. However, Native Hawaiians who refused ahead of time to become American citizens first were not allowed to vote.

There is now a bill before Congress, the Hawaii Federal Recognition Bill, which seeks formal recognition of the Hawaiians as indigenous people by the U.S. This is not to be confused with the movement for Hawaiian sovereignity, but, rather, is a push for what is known in legal terms as stare decisis: stand by your law. That is, give the Hawaiians the same recognition that was accorded to the Native American tribes.

I urge you to look into this matter and decide for yourselves whether you believe it’s worthy of support. Then let your Congressman know where you stand.

As for me, I am in favor of it. Strongly so, as a matter of fact. I am in the unique position of being half Native American and I live in Hawaii where I see the native Hawaiians treated with less cultural sensitivity and respect than the American Indian tribes have received in these past 100 years. But before you jump in and air your opinion, I want to share one more Hawaiian thing with you. It is our state motto:

I support this bill because I believe it is time to do the right thing.