Advocating for Native Hawaiians
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Advocating for Native Hawaiians Throughout her 30 years of public service to Hawaii, Congresswoman Hirono has always believed that how we treat our native peoples reflects our values and who we are as a country. Working For Hawaii Advocating for Native Hawaiian Recognition and Self-Determination: One hundred years after the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii, President Bill Clinton signed the Apology Resolution which officially acknowledged for the first time America’s culpability in deposing Queen Liliuokalani and upheld the inherent sovereignty of the Native Hawaiian people and their right to self-determination. Unlike American Indians and Alaska Natives, the U.S. government does not explicitly recognize the right of Native Hawaiians to govern themselves. To redress this inequity, U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka, with the support of the entire Hawaii Congressional delegation, has introduced in each Congress since 2000 legislation to provide a process for federal recognition of a Native Hawaiian governing entity. Since she was first elected, Congresswoman Hirono has cosponsored the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act (NHGRA) in each Congress. Working with then-Congressman Abercrombie, Congresswoman Hirono testified in support of NHGRA before the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources. She also successfully defended the bill on the floor of the House against attacks from those who sought to deny Native Hawaiians the rights accorded to the other indigenous peoples of what is now the United States. The bill passed the House in October 2007 and again in February 2010 and was referred to the Senate. In the 112th Congress (2011-2012), Congresswoman Hirono has renewed the Hawaii Congressional delegation’s effort for passage of the NHGRA and is the lead sponsor of the House version of the bill securing a record 51 bipartisan cosponsors. Congresswoman Hirono remains committed to the bill’s ultimate passage. Supporting Communities by Protecting Health and Housing Programs It is our kuleana as a nation to stand up for programs that are critical to addressing the health and housing needs that disproportionately affect the Native Hawaiian community, just as the federal government has committed to American Indians and Alaska Natives. In 2007, Congresswoman Hirono joined with then-Congressman Abercrombie to defeat a plan to strip the Native Hawaiian Housing Program from the Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development Appropriations Bill of 2007. She argued on the House floor that Native Hawaiians experience significant housing problems related to affordability, overcrowding, and structural inadequacy. The House overwhelmingly defeated the amendment and preserved the Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant. Congresswoman Hirono has also helped secure funding for the Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant, which has been funded at around $13 million annually over the last several years. Recognizing the success of the Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant Program and working closely with the Hawaiian Homes Commission and the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, Congresswoman Hirono introduced the Hawaiian Homeownership Opportunity Act of 2011. Her bill reauthorizes the Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant Program and expands access to U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) loan guarantees for low-income Native Hawaiian families. This provision reduces the cost of homeownership for Native Hawaiian families and reduces the risk of default by lowering their monthly mortgage payments. The Native Hawaiian health care program, which was reauthorized as part of the Affordable Care Act, has been continuously funded since 1988. Native Hawaiians experience high mortality rates from diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and hypertension. In 2009, Congresswoman Hirono introduced legislation to revise and extend the Native Hawaiian Health Care Act to 2014, helping to improve the health care status of the Native Hawaiian community. Congresswoman Hirono has also advocated in the House for Native Hawaiian Health funding. The program has received an average of more than $13 million each year from 2007 through 2011. The grant serves Native Hawaiians throughout the State of Hawaii through six Native Hawaiian health delivery organizations: Ho‘ola Lahui Hawai‘i, Hui Malama Ola Na ‘Oiwi, Hui No Ke Ola Pono, Ke Ola Mamo, Na Pu‘uwai, and Papa Ola Lokahi. Congresswoman Hirono also introduced the House version of the Native Hawaiian Medicaid Coverage Act of 2011, which would provide 100 percent federal Medicaid coverage for Native Hawaiians, consistent with the reimbursement for care provided to American Indians and Alaska Natives under Medicaid. Educating Our Keiki Congresswoman Hirono believes that education is the key to economic opportunity. That’s why she has continued to advocate strongly for Native Hawaiian education despite efforts in Congress to eliminate funding. When the Republican spending plan for fiscal year 2011 completely eliminated funding for the Native Hawaiian Education Act, Congresswoman Hirono joined with Congressman Don Young of Alaska to restore funding eligibility for this program and for the Alaska Native education program. The Young-Hirono Amendment passed on a bipartisan vote of 313-171; the Native Hawaiian Education Program ultimately received $34 million in funding for fiscal year 2011. Every year since being elected to Congress, Congresswoman Hirono has submitted requests to the House Appropriations Committee in support of funding for education programs that benefit Native Hawaiians. Some of the funding she helped to secure over her tenure includes: · $33-$34 million each year for Native Hawaiian Education Act programs. · $500,000 for the Native Hawaiian Arts and Culture Program, which focuses on assisting Native Hawaiian practitioners to foster a greater sense of cultural awareness and help keep Hawaiian traditions strong. · Between $7 million and $9.6 million annually for Native Hawaiian-serving institutions through the Departments of Education and Agriculture. · Approximately $106,000 each year for restoration of Kahoolawe through support for the Hawaii Plant Materials Center on Molokai. · $500,000 for the Tutu and Me Traveling Preschool Program, which primarily benefits low-income Native Hawaiian children and their caregivers. · $119,000 for a computer learning center for Kanuikapono Public Charter School in Anahola which primarily serves Native Hawaiian children. · $2 million to remove 8,500 tons of potentially hazardous metallic debris and other wastes at Bellows Air Force Base in Waimanalo that could have been exposed due to shoreline erosion. Waimanalo community members had requested help to clean up the dump for years; Congresswoman Hirono worked with the community to secure funding for the cleanup. Honoring Native Hawaiian History Through the efforts of our state’s congressional delegation, the contributions of Native Hawaiians to our islands’ rich history has garnered increased national awareness in Washington, D.C. The human suffering that occurred in Hawaii’s past must never be forgotten. · Since the creation of the Capitol Visitor Center, Congress has passed legislation authorizing a ceremony at Emancipation Hall honoring King Kamehameha. During her tenure, Congresswoman Hirono has introduced the authorizing resolution in the House. The ceremonies have been attended by officers of the Royal Societies, the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and members of Congress. · In 2009, Congress passed Congresswoman Hirono’s Kalaupapa Memorial Act, which authorized a memorial at Kalaupapa National Historical Park in honor of the 8,000 people, the majority of whom were Native Hawaiian, that were forcibly relocated to Kalaupapa because of Hansen’s Disease. Congress also passed Congresswoman Hirono’s resolution commemorating the canonization of Father Damien de Veuster to sainthood. Making Native Hawaiian Voices Heard Even prior to joining the House of Representatives in 2007, Congresswoman Hirono, then Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii, stood in partnership and solidarity with the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities during Census 2000 when, for the first time in the history of the Census, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders were counted distinct from Asians. As Education Task Force Chair of the Congressional Asian and Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) in the House of Representatives, Congresswoman Hirono continues to advocate for improving data collection as well as improving disaggregation of that data to educate federal, state, public, and private decision-makers on issues and trends that inform successful policy and program interventions targeting Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander communities. In the fall of 2011, CAPAC met with President Obama to ask that data be collected to address the diverse student population of the Asian American Pacific Islander community. For example, the federal government lumps 73% of Hawaii’s public school students – whether they’re Native Hawaiian, Filipino, Japanese, Samoan, Chinese or Micronesian – as a single Asian/Pacific Islander group. This makes it much harder for educators to address the many unique challenges and needs that may exist. As a result of CAPAC’s advocacy, the U.S. Department of Education in the spring of 2012 released a Request for Information to learn how states, school districts, and institutions of higher education around the country are collecting and using data on Native Hawaiians and other Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. These recommendations will be shared across the country so education stakeholders and community leaders can best address the needs of all students. In social change initiatives, knowledge is power; robust, disaggregated data for these communities represents a crucial step forward to draw proper attention to the diverse characteristics and needs of Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islander migrants from the U.S. Associated Pacific Islands, and immigrants native to Pacific Island countries. In the decade between Census 2000 and Census 2010, results indicate that Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islanders make up 0.4 percent of the nation’s population, totaling 1.2 million people. The Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone or in combination population grew by 40 percent between the 2000 Census and 2010 Census. Some 14 percent of single-race Native Hawaiians and Other Pacific Islanders 25 years of age and older had at least a bachelor’s degree, and Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander-owned businesses grew by 30.6 percent. A Strong Advocate in Congress A strong, self-sufficient Native Hawaiian community means a stronger, sustainable Hawaii. In the tough and uncertain times we live in, Congresswoman Hirono leads by example as an unrelenting voice and advocate in Congress for the Native Hawaiian community. |
