Hawaii Report on the 6th IWNAM Gathering, Bay Area

Summary report to AFSC Hawaii Area Program Committee
September 11-14, 2007
6th International Women’s Network Against Militarism Bay Area Gathering
WOMEN RESISTING MILITARISM AND CREATING A CULTURE OF LIFE
THE GATHERING

 For four days fifty women grassroots activists , advocates, teachers and researchers from Guam, Hawaii, Okinawa, Japan, Philippines, Puerto Rico and South Korea assembled in San Francisco, California for the  6th International Women’s Network Against Militarism gathering.  The women shared information about their work for peace and genuine security. Many issues were discussed including the negative impacts of the US military in their community’s i.e.  adverse health impacts caused by military contamination, resisting the expansion of US bases in their nations, and opposing limitations on civil rights for those who speak out against militarism.
Hawaii sent 7 delegates, all representing DMZ Hawaii Aloha Aina.

1.    Darlene Rodrigues
2.    Brenda Kwon
3.    Shannan Chan
4.    Anjali Puri
5.    Summer Nemeth
6.    Rhinda Yamashiro (DMZ Hawaii Aloha Aina & HOA Hawaii Okinawa Alliance)
7.    Terri Kekoolani

The international meeting, hosted by the Bay area group “Women for Genuine Society,” was divided in several parts;
1-The local Bay area coordinating committee organized a tour for the delegates on Tuesday, September 11, 2007 entitled “Hidden in Plain Sight.” We were taken to three sites to learn about the struggle of native people and communities dealing with military toxic issues and environmental justice.
2-Bay area organizations hosted a series of “community conversations” highlighting international delegates  experiences, strategies and projects to transform local communities and cultures affected by U.S. militarism :

•    Tuesday, Sept 11 / VOICES FROM THE PHILIPPINES / held at the Filipino Community Center, hosted by babae, FACES, Gabnet.
•    Wednesday, Sept 12 / VOICES FROM PUERTO RICO & HAWAII / held at La Pena Cultural Center in Berkeley hosted by Bay Area Boricuas and others.
•    Thursday, Sept 13 / VOICES FROM SOUTH KOREA / held at the Pacific School for Religion Capel in Berkeley hosted by KAWAN, KAUP and PANA Institute.
•    Friday, Sept 14 / VOICES FROM OKINAWA & GUAM / held at the AFSC San Francisco office hosted by Friends of Okinawa & Famoksaiyan.

3-A cultural night entitled WITH THESE VOICES: Art & Expression of Women in Resistance held at the San Francisco Women’s Building in the Mission District highlighted the local hosts and international delegates in an evening of dance, art, music, poetry, theatre and a special anti-military fashion show. The event was well attended drawing in the local support groups and their families and friends.

HAWAII WOMEN DELEGATES
The Hawaii delegates associated with DMZ Hawaii Aloha Aina were all participants of various demilitarization campaigns in Hawaii which include (naming a few):
•    A campaign to stop the permanent stationing of the Stryker Brigade in Hawaii. Take a look at our DMZ Hawaii Aloha Aina website www.dmzhawaii.org for background on the Stryker Brigade issue and background on the Stryker Brigade issue and background on our DMZ group
•    Organizing University students, faculty and community members to stop classified military research at the University of Hawaii (UARC). You’ll find background on the UARC issue and great pictures of different actions at our website www.stopuarc.inc
•    And Counter-Recruitment in high schools and among youth through a program called CHOICES. Check out the CHOICES website www.choiceshawaii..org

Our work also included solidarity and support actions with the peoples of Okinawa (HOA), Guam, Puerto Rico, South Korea, the Philippines and most recently Australia. HOA or Hawaii Okinawa Alliance website http://hoa.seesaa.net/ was an example of our base building work with the overseas and local Okinawa community in Hawaii. Rinda Yamashiro also represented HOA as a delegate.


HAWAII AND PUERTO RICO PRESENTATION
Regarding our partnering with our Puerto Rican sisters, these were a few things we laid out and included in the community conversation:
1)    Hawaii and Puerto Rico were victims of Manifest Destiny & US imperialism. In 1893
the US military invaded and engaged in the illegal overthrow of the independent nation of the Kingdom of Hawaii in order to maintain its military access to Pearl Harbor. In August 1898 with the outbreak of the Spanish American war the US formally occupied
Hawaii through a Congressional joint resolution called the Newlands Resolution. The US military’s objective was to secure Hawaii as an outpost to wage war against the Spanish in the Philippines and to project a strategic military position in the Pacific facing Asia. This objective, which was incubated early as the 1840’s via the Tyler Doctrine & more consciously in the 1870’s, had finally been fulfilled. (KKajihiro paper Military in Hawaii / AFSC)

Similarly, in 1898 with the outbreak of the Spanish-American War, Puerto Rico was invaded by the United States. Following the outcome of the war, Spain was forced to cede Puerto Rico along with Cuba, Philippines, Guam to the United States under the Treaty of Paris. Puerto Rico began the twentieth century under the military rule of the United States with officials, including the governor, appointed by the President of the United States. (Resistance in Paradise / AFSC & Wikipedia)

In Hawaii, after US occupation, a second wave of indoctrination into American principles and values took place. Once our country was under US rule, US military forces took our best lands (in some cases whole islands like Kahoolawe) and fishponds (Puuwai Momi or Pearl Harbor) to establish one of the most strategic military bases in the Pacific that is now the home of the Pacific Command http://www.pacom.mil/about/aor.shtml

As Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian) Summer and I wanted to  share our peoples historical fight against the annexation of Hawaii to the United States (which we won) and provide an overview of the Kanaka Maoli sovereignty movement leading up to contemporary issues facing us today. We also talked about the US military role in Hawaii and its impact on our society.

2)    As women under American domination and as women of color (Hawaii delegates are Filipina, Chinese, East Indian, Okinawa, Korean & Kanaka Maoli) we found similar stories of resistance to American imperialist ideology, racism and colonialization.

 3)    Hawaii and Puerto Rico similarly have a large diaspora community, many of whom live on the continental US (North America).

4)    We are island women living in island environments surrounded by the ocean. Our cultures and spiritual beliefs are rooted in island and ocean living.
FUNDING AND OUTCOMES:
The Hawaii delegates, with the help of Hawaii People’s Fund, raised $4000 plus to attend the gathering. 

The outcomes were:
•    The production of a power point presentation on Hawaii and the impacts of militarism given at the VOICES FROM PUERTO RICO & HAWAII La Pena Cultural Center in Berkeley.
•    The production of a book of poems by women in Hawaii entitled HO’OMO’OMO’O: Piecing Together Expressions of Resistance. The books were covered by handmade paper made by the Hawaii delegates for the event. All the women delegates at the gathering where gifted with the book of poems.
•    Several performances by the delegation at the conference’s Art & Expression of Women in Resistence event attended by all the delegates and family and friends from the local community.
-    A hula performance by the delegates, dancing to the song “O Kalena` Kai”, a song containing many historic sites along Waialua Bay up to Lihue on the island of Oahu, threatened to be destroyed by proposed training facilities and routes setup for the Stryker Brigade.  
-    Poetry readings by poets Brenda Kwon and Darlene Rodrigues
-    A special Okinawan dance performance by delegate Rhina Yamashiro as part of the Okinawan women’s delegation presentation.
•    A video entitled “Na Wahine Koa” about the Hawaii delegates preparing for the women’s demil event featuring  a montage of scenes & impressions about  militarism’s impact on Hawaii and us as women in particular.
•    On Oahu, Girl Fest Panel Discussion at the Center for Hawaiian Studies November 2007, Addressing Militarization and its Effect on the Rise of Domestic Violence in the Hawaiian Community, one of the panelists was Terrilee Kekoolani from DMZ Hawaii Aloha Aina & Delegate to the Women’s Demilitarization International gathering.  Here is an excerpt of the announcement describing the talk:

“ In wartime, we always support the lives and well being of the brave women and men sent to protect our country. However, as a caring community and country promoting democracy, we must address how militarization affects rates of both sexual and domestic violence both abroad and in our country, especially within indigenous and endemic communities who are occupied. This panel will confront this problem publicly in an effort to bring concerned democracy-loving people from all walks of life to seek ways in which we may find ways to protect justice as well as protect women and indigenous communities globally.”

The work towards social change in the community continues through a Talk Story we are holding on Wednesday, September 24 at the Honolulu Friends Quaker House.  We will be hosting a gathering to talk about Violence Against Women and Militarism.  A featured speaker Maricela Guzman, Navy veteran, rape survivor and member of SWAN (Service Women Action Network) will focus on the problems women face in the military.  We will also be discussing the rise of domestic violence on bases and off bases within our military families and within the larger community.