WVWS Attends 6th IWNAM meeting in the Bay Area

II. In 2007, WVWS mobilized again to attend the 6th International Women’s Network Against Militarism gathering in the Bay Area. Note the name change from  East-Asia-US-Puerto Rico Women's Network Against Militarism. The name has changed to be inclusive to women from other countries who are joining this network. At this meeting, Hawaii delegates shared the effects of militarism in Hawaii and the various ways they are speaking out. They also presented a power points, performances and booklets that gave a historical and cultural information on the effects of Hawaii's military occupation.

As a ho'okupu (offering) for this gathering, we created a book of poetry entitled: Ho'omo'omo'o: Piecing Together Expressions of Resistance, written by local women in Hawaii.

As stated in image above, "the term ho'omo'omo'o was given to the first beating in the traditional kapa making process, and is also appropriate for the first edition of this collection. Because women were traditionally responsible for the making of kapa (the goddess Hina was a kapa maker), a book of poems by women is well represented by a word connected to kapa making. There is a lot of kaona in the title ho'omo'omo'o as it encompasses the word mo'omo'o, the name for the bundles of fibers which stick together. Like these fibers, the individual voices in this collection will be pieced together to make a stronger statement against the militarization of our homeland. The title can also be connected to the mo'o, protectors of sacred bodies of water, who were identified throughout Hawai'i in both 'oli and mo'olelo. These mo'o were usually identified as being women, and were revered by the people of Hawai'i. Like these mo'o who protected our sacred sites in the past, the voices of women collected in this book are meant to expose the impacts of militarization on our communities, and to protect our 'aina from further militarization."  ~ Darlene Rodrigues and Summer Nemeth

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Hawaii Report on the 6th International Women’s Network Against Militarism 

Bay Area Gathering

September 11-14, 2007

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.  Read more...