"Act of War" (1993)

A response to Puhipau and Joan Lander’s Act of War: The Overthrow of the Hawaiian Nation (1993), a stylized recreation/documentary of a period in colonial Hawaii.

I watched a disturbing documentary this week concerning the history of Hawaii as being a part of the United States, titled Act of War: The Overthrow of the Hawaiian Nation (1993) and it’s no wonder that many Hawaiian people resent being called “Americans.”  I’d be pretty upset too if some strangers showed up at my house one day, spreading diseases, telling me I needed to live a different lifestyle, killing off my family and friends, using religion to justify their actions and consequences, and then telling me it was their house now.  Of course, it didn’t quite happen like that for the Hawaiian people because for them it was a lengthy and devastating process that changed Hawaii forever.

Prior to the onset of colonial influence, the Hawaiian people lived off the land and sea in a communal environment that was truly “for the people, by the people.”  They had their own culture, and their own language.  They had their own agriculture, seafaring techniques, and methods of navigation.  They were independent and proud.  European explorers changed all of that starting with Captain Cook’s discovery of the islands in 1778.  This was swiftly followed by missionaries imposing European religious beliefs and practices, instituting a New England way of living and dress code, and the rapid diminishing of the native Hawaiian population.  Hawaii became the target of exploitation for profit, and there was an explosive increase in immigrant workers for sugar plantations.  Hawaii was recognized as a strategic military position in the mid-Pacific, not to mention a tropical paradise playground with tremendous tourism potential, and there was a continuous U.S. Naval presence among the islands.  Queen Lili’uokalani succeeded King Kalakaua following his death, and attempted to establish a new constitution that restored government power to native Hawaiians.  This was not looked upon favorably by the white provisional government in Hawaii, and a plan was devised to remove the Queen from her position.  In 1893 there was an unjustified military occupation, and the Queen peacefully resigned to annexation to avoid clashing against U.S. armed forces for the sake of humanity. 

It was soon recognized that Hawaii was wrongfully taken over, and it seemed that the mistake would be corrected, but Hawaii was eventually annexed into statehood regardless.  The U.S. was concerned about becoming a global military power, and Hawaii was essential to that plan.  In 1993 President Bill Clinton saw this documentary and issued a formal apology to the Hawaiian people on behalf of the United States for the wrongful taking of Hawaii, but to this day Hawaii is no closer than it was then to becoming the independent nation it once was.

A similar story of loss could be told for the Native Americans that suffered at the hands of the United States as well.  They also lost their land, language and culture.  The truth is that America was formed by people escaping oppression who, in turn, oppressed others in order to build an idea of freedom.  So my message to American citizens is this: Don’t take what freedom you have for granted because it wasn’t free at all.  Millions of people lost their lives, cultures were extinguished, and lives continue to be sacrificed to this day to preserve our way of life.  Be respectful to those who are still around whose land you are living on, and even apologize to them for being here.  I understand that if it wasn’t us it would have been somebody else, but it’s just sad that the rest of the world couldn’t live in the kind of communal fashion that existed among the Hawaiian people prior to colonialism.

Image courtesy of:

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/2001/Feb/12/212localnews29.html

           For a preview of the film:

http://www.asiapacificfilms.com/films/show/300-act-of-war-the-overthrow-of-the-hawaiian-nation-

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