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The Alaska Federation of Natives 2011 Annual Convention-Strength in Unity
Statement of Chairman Daniel K. Akaka
Sat, October 22, 2011
Committee on Indian Affairs
Video Message
Aloha! I am pleased to address the Alaska Federation of Natives Annual Convention. I have worked with the leadership at AFN, with Albert, Ralph, Julie and of course Nelson, for many years on issues important to all indigenous peoples.
As many of you know, I am the only Native member of the United States Senate, and I chair the Committee on Indian Affairs.
I commend you on your theme this year, Strength in Unity. Now, more than ever, Native peoples must stand, work, and achieve together. We must be creative in how we maximize our resources, and we must be bold in our efforts to solve our community challenges.
This year, I have focused the Committee's work around two basic themes-identity and homelands. We have exercised oversight on programs and issues that impact the identities of Native peoples and their homelands. I have sponsored bills to improve the ability of Native communities to be in control of their homelands and their children's education-the very future of a people's identity.
As Chairman, my top legislative priority is the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act,
S. 675. Native Hawaiians are the only major group of peoples indigenous to the United States that do not have the benefit of a government-to-government relationship.
I do not have to tell you how important that relationship can be to empowering Native communities to malama, to take care of their own. The sovereignty of a people is their greatest asset in perpetuating their unique identity, and Native Hawaiians deserve the same treatment by this nation as every other peoples indigenous to these shores. That is pono, right and just.
I want to say mahalo nui loa, to express my many thanks, to you all for the strong support the Alaska Federation of Natives has consistently expressed for my bill over the years.
Throughout my career, and especially in the time I have spent in Washington, first as a Congressman and now as a Senator, I have tried to conduct myself with aloha in all that I do.
For Native Hawaiians, aloha means love. When we greet each other, when we work together, we do so in the spirit of caring for each other, and out of mutual respect for one another. That is aloha.
I believe the best way to be effective in Washington, D.C. is to approach your work with aloha, and to take up your kuleana, your responsibilities, and to work for what is pono, what is right and just. The final ingredient to success is to persevere.
I encourage all of you, in whatever you do, to embrace these principles. They have been the secret to my success.
While I never imagined when I first started out as a young teacher, that I would one day serve in the United States Senate, working with aloha, taking up my kuleana and doing what is pono has led me here. Perseverance has kept me here.
I want to commend the Alaska Native leadership for its dedication to the principle of mentoring your youth-they are the future, and through experience and opportunity, they can be well prepared to meet the future needs of Native peoples.
I hope you are having a productive convention, and I look forward to hearing about your priorities and outcomes in the weeks to come. Anabasi, Goonesh-cheesh, Ee-lan-nigoo-loo, and Kitak-qua. A hui hou.
Video Message
Aloha! I am pleased to address the Alaska Federation of Natives Annual Convention. I have worked with the leadership at AFN, with Albert, Ralph, Julie and of course Nelson, for many years on issues important to all indigenous peoples.
As many of you know, I am the only Native member of the United States Senate, and I chair the Committee on Indian Affairs.
I commend you on your theme this year, Strength in Unity. Now, more than ever, Native peoples must stand, work, and achieve together. We must be creative in how we maximize our resources, and we must be bold in our efforts to solve our community challenges.
This year, I have focused the Committee's work around two basic themes-identity and homelands. We have exercised oversight on programs and issues that impact the identities of Native peoples and their homelands. I have sponsored bills to improve the ability of Native communities to be in control of their homelands and their children's education-the very future of a people's identity.
As Chairman, my top legislative priority is the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act,
S. 675. Native Hawaiians are the only major group of peoples indigenous to the United States that do not have the benefit of a government-to-government relationship.
I do not have to tell you how important that relationship can be to empowering Native communities to malama, to take care of their own. The sovereignty of a people is their greatest asset in perpetuating their unique identity, and Native Hawaiians deserve the same treatment by this nation as every other peoples indigenous to these shores. That is pono, right and just.
I want to say mahalo nui loa, to express my many thanks, to you all for the strong support the Alaska Federation of Natives has consistently expressed for my bill over the years.
Throughout my career, and especially in the time I have spent in Washington, first as a Congressman and now as a Senator, I have tried to conduct myself with aloha in all that I do.
For Native Hawaiians, aloha means love. When we greet each other, when we work together, we do so in the spirit of caring for each other, and out of mutual respect for one another. That is aloha.
I believe the best way to be effective in Washington, D.C. is to approach your work with aloha, and to take up your kuleana, your responsibilities, and to work for what is pono, what is right and just. The final ingredient to success is to persevere.
I encourage all of you, in whatever you do, to embrace these principles. They have been the secret to my success.
While I never imagined when I first started out as a young teacher, that I would one day serve in the United States Senate, working with aloha, taking up my kuleana and doing what is pono has led me here. Perseverance has kept me here.
I want to commend the Alaska Native leadership for its dedication to the principle of mentoring your youth-they are the future, and through experience and opportunity, they can be well prepared to meet the future needs of Native peoples.
I hope you are having a productive convention, and I look forward to hearing about your priorities and outcomes in the weeks to come. Anabasi, Goonesh-cheesh, Ee-lan-nigoo-loo, and Kitak-qua. A hui hou.
