Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 22, Number 11, 1 Nowemapa 2005 — Page 12 Advertisements Column 1 [ADVERTISEMENT]

Ke Ke'ena Kuleana Hawai'i

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1959 The federal Admission Acf making Hawai'i a sfafe specifies fhaf a share of revenue from fhe state's "puhlie land trust," made up of 1 .4 million acres of former Kingdom of Hawai'i crown and government lands, should be used for the betterment of native Hawaiians. 1970$ Sparked by grassroots land struggles and the civil rights movements of the era, Hawaiians ignite a cultural renaissance and rekindle awareness of their native history and rights. Amid such efforts as the movement to reclaim Kaho'olawe and the Kalama Valley land struggle, activists increasingly eall for the reinstatement of Native Hawaiian self-determination. Summer 1978 At the state Constitutional Convention, delegate Frenchy De Soto and others lead ^ ■ ' ■ " ' efforts to establish a state agency t ■': dedicated to the welfare of t*f ■ ** 1 A. Hawaiians,fundedbyashare ^ - e of ceded-lands revenue. e" * ' In the end, Con-Con del- ^HD egates overwhelmingly approve a constitutional HH amendment to create H the Office of Hawaiian W In the November general state voters narrowly ratify the amendment creating OHA, ^H along with amendments protecting ancestral lands, upholding native access rights, mandating education on Hawaiian culture in puhlie schools and ma king 'ōlelo Hawai'i an official language of the state. 1979 ■ '80 The state Legislature narrowly passes laws thatdefine OHA's purpose, powers and revenues. OHA's share of ceded lands revenue is set at 20 percent, and the agency is charged with a broad mandate of bettering Hawaiians. Voting in OHA elections is limited to those of Hawaiian ancestry, and candidates for trustee must also be Hawaiian. V I lK fl I/" j ■ Hl I

Hov. 4, 1980 w | For the first time in a century, Hawaiians are able to vote for their own representatives. Some 43,000 Hawaiian voters elect 0HA's first group of nine trustees: Peter Apo, Roy Benham, Rodney Burgess, Frenchy De Soto, Thomas Kaulukukui Sr., Moke Keale, Joseph Kealoha, Walter Ritte and Malama Solomon. Hov. 26, 1980 ' Trustees hold their first official meeting, selecting De Soto as board chairperson and Joseph Kealoha as vice chair. Committees are formed on eeonomie development, land and natural resources, education, culture, health, and human resources and budget. Hov.27, 1980 The trustees are officially sworn in by Hawai'i Chief Justice Richardson, a Native Hawaiian, who sheds tears of emohon during the ceremony. January 1981 The trustees secure a small office in ; / . Kawaiaha'o Plaza, furnished with three pieces of military surplus furniture and staffed by one administrative employee. Jan. 17, 1981 Amid high protocol at 'lolani Palaee on the 88th anniversary of the overthrow, OHA is officially dedicated and the trustees inaugurated. Summer 1981 OHA launches its free newspaper, Ka Wai Ola o OHA (The Living Water of OHA), whieh is initially published guarterly and mailed to 45,000 beneficiaries. 1980$ Throughout its first decade, OHA is unahle to collect its fair share of ceded lands revenue from various state agencies. OHA receives an average of $1 .4 million a year, far less than it is owed and barely enough to keep the agency functioning. April 1983 OHA initiates the first of several lengthy, controversial lawsuits against the state to recover ceded-lands revenue. The courts repeatedly refer the agency back to the Legislature for a poliheal resolution, but to this day such a solution has not been fully achieved. Mid-'80s OHA initiūtes ū ™ūe,Y °f programs to address Hawaiian , needs, including business loans, training for kōpuna educators and review of development plans for potential impact on Hawaiian sites and cultural access. 23, 1988 The state's official Ho'olako: Year of the Hawaiian ■ ■ ■ ' ' clJlminūtes in "Ho'olōkahi," a massive celebration at Aloha Stadium. Attended by some 50,000 people, it is the largest gathering of Hawaiians in living memory. 1989 OHA launches Operation 'Ohana, its first effort to eompile a registry of Native Hawaiians. By the time the program is ended in 2002, about 25,000 names have been collected.