Losing Access to Ancestral Lands

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I had mixed emotions when I learned about how Hā‘ena and other families lost access to their ancestral lands. Part of the Hawaiian in me was fuming at first because this is exactly what I see going on today. A lot of Hawaiians are moving out of state because the cost of living in Hawai'i is superfluous. The other part of me is sad and hurt because now their keiki today and future generations to come won't know where they're from, who their 'ohana is, or anything about the land they live on besides what the US or government in general wants them to believe. As a Hawaiian who has a lot of 'ohana spread throughout the island chain, it breaks my heart seeing some of my immediate family members living under a tent behind a house or out on the street drugged out.

As a human being just trying to survive and live life, I feel disgusted. Many people may not understand Hawaiian culture and traditions, but that is how OUR kupuna survived before we were overthrown. The US government stole our kupunas land, they've been preventing our community from gaining access to historical sites and they barely listen to the mana'o or mo'olelo that the Hawaiians who were born and raised here give them and it's okay for them to do that to our 'ohana. Yet, if we were to steal their land, prevent them from gaining access to historical sites, and chose to ignore anything they told us about their place, we'd be in the wrong. We'd more than likely be arrested or even worse killed. 

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