
Legendary Native Hawaiian activist and political scientist Haunani-Kay Trask traces the beginnings of the Modern Hawaiian Movement back to Kokua Hawaiʻi, a community-based organization that first mobilized to protect local and Native Hawaiian residents of Kalama Valley in Oʻahu from overdevelopment back in the 1970s. In this insightful and mind-provoking documentary, former members recount what happened to them during that tumultuous time, and the issues they faced during organizing: how do intersections of race, ethnicity, gender and class complicate consensus-building, and how do we work around it? What is the role of Hawaiʻi in formation of indigenous movements around the world today? Ultimately, their testimonies reveal to us why learning their histories remains vitally important today. As houselessness, generational trauma, and the desecration of sacred lands continue to ravage Hawaiʻi today, it is all the more important to see the struggles of Hawaiian people as connected in space and time
- Year2020
- Runtime124 minutes
- DirectorGary Pak
Legendary Native Hawaiian activist and political scientist Haunani-Kay Trask traces the beginnings of the Modern Hawaiian Movement back to Kokua Hawaiʻi, a community-based organization that first mobilized to protect local and Native Hawaiian residents of Kalama Valley in Oʻahu from overdevelopment back in the 1970s. In this insightful and mind-provoking documentary, former members recount what happened to them during that tumultuous time, and the issues they faced during organizing: how do intersections of race, ethnicity, gender and class complicate consensus-building, and how do we work around it? What is the role of Hawaiʻi in formation of indigenous movements around the world today? Ultimately, their testimonies reveal to us why learning their histories remains vitally important today. As houselessness, generational trauma, and the desecration of sacred lands continue to ravage Hawaiʻi today, it is all the more important to see the struggles of Hawaiian people as connected in space and time
- Year2020
- Runtime124 minutes
- DirectorGary Pak