LEO 'ELELE - TRUSTEE MESSAGES

What does it mean?

Vice-Chair Walter M. Heen Trustee, O'ahu

On Nov. 5, 2008, Hawai'i, the rest of the country, and the world experienced a euphoric state of amazement and hope. There was amazement that a person of color, Barack Obama, could be elected president of the most influential country in the world. And there was hope that this new leader could bring new perspectives to the many issues and concerns that people everywhere are experiencing, either as part of a larger community or an isolated one.

Hawai'i had particular cause to celebrate that momentous event. After all, the President-elect was born and spent most of his early formative years in Honolulu. Those early experiences, here, undoubtedly contributed to the whole man and, I believe, instilled in him a keen awareness of how people of diverse cultural, ethnic and economic backgrounds can live together in a kind of harmony not often experienced in other parts of the world, or in many parts of the United States. Did you see that news clip of him walking along Young Street in “slippahs?” That said a lot to me. But those early experiences are, obviously enough, only a small part of this new world leader's makeup.

Barack Obama's further experiences at the country's most prestigious law school (that's a major concession from a Georgetown Law graduate) and as a community organizer in Chicago contributed more greatly to the formation of the man, than his youth. He not only got a great education but he experienced the rigors of competing with some of the brightest minds in the country. His community-organizing experiences were assisted greatly, I'm sure, by his vision of people living in harmony, such as in Hawai'i, yet striving for recognition and a “place in the world.” I can only believe that he is still driven by that vision, and will evidence that in his policies and decisions as president.

But, in my mind, Barack Obama's humanitarian world view was forged by his visits to Kenya, his father's birthplace, as brief as those visits might have been. It was during those visits, in my opinion, that he was exposed to the dire effects of western colonialism on that country. He saw, firsthand, the effects of the colonialists' exploitation of the physical resources of Kenya and also learned from his relatives of the difficulties they experienced. Indeed, he saw for himself the long-lasting effects of colonialism on his family and the people of Kenya. He can lead in altering the industrialized world's treatment of the less-developed countries.

All of Obama's experiences have molded a leader who has the capacity to bring people together in neighborhoods, in cities, in states and as a country in such a way that will produce the most good for the most people. And this can only mean good things for Native Hawaiians.

Obama takes with him to Washington strong Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress. We can expect that his policies and proposals will be well received. At least they will not be rejected out of hand. He has pledged to sign the Akaka Bill if passed by Congress, and with Sen. Inouye as chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, we can expect that that will happen. The strong Democratic majority and Inouye's position will also protect other entitlements for Native Hawaiians in appropriations for health, education and housing. In the present session of Congress there was still a move on the part of the Senate Republican Steering Committee to remove specific benefits for Native Hawaiians in housing assistance and small-business contracting with federal agencies. These efforts can be forestalled with the Democratic majority and Obama's more benevolent view of minority rights.