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LAS VEGAS — Ua mākaukau ʻo Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu e kuhi pono i nā ʻelepani ma ka lumi hulahula ma ke kakahiaka hoʻolauna o ka ʻahahui a ke Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement ma Las Vegas. 

“ʻO ka mea mua e hoʻomaopopo ai, ʻaʻole ʻo Las Vegas ka mokupuna ʻaiwa,” wahi a Wong-Kalu ma ka Pōʻakahi. “ʻO kēlā manaʻo kekahi paipai kālaiʻāina i hana ʻia e nā kānaka ma ka ʻōnaehana hoʻokipa malihini no ka hoʻopaipai ʻia ʻana o Las Vegas ma ko kākou home ʻo Hawaiʻi. Me he mea lā, hiki ke kipa koke ʻia kēia ʻāina me ka maʻalahi.” 

“ʻO ko kākou mokupuni ʻaiwa, ʻo ia nō ʻo Nihoa,” wahi āna. Aia ʻo Nihoa i ka ʻaoʻao ʻākau komohana o Kauaʻi. 

ʻŌlelo mai ʻo Wong-Kalu e like me nā kānaka he nui no Hawaiʻi i huakaʻi aku i Las Vegas no ka ʻahahui, ua paʻakikī nō ka hoʻomaopopo ʻoluʻolu ʻana i kēia ʻoiaʻiʻo: ʻoi aku ka nui o nā Hawaiʻi e noho nei ma waho aʻe o Hawaiʻi ma mua o nā Hawaiʻi e noho kulāiwi nei.

“Ma ke ʻano he ʻelele moʻomeheu no ke Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement, ua kau koʻu noʻonoʻo a pilikia, no ka mea, mau nō koʻu noho pū ʻana me nā kānaka ma ke kulāiwi,” wahi āna. “ʻAʻole ʻokoʻa iki koʻu aloha i nā kānaka oneʻi, akā, kālele nō wau i ke kulāiwi. Eia naʻe, he mea maikaʻi ka hele ʻana mai i ʻaneʻi nei, no ka mea, hiki ke hoʻomanaʻo ʻia ko kākou lāhui e hoʻi home, e hoʻomanaʻo hou i ke alahele hoʻi home, a e hoʻomanaʻo hoʻi i ko kākou lāhui, inā haʻaheo ʻoe i kou Hawaiʻi ʻana, e hoʻomaopopo ʻoe, aia ʻoe e noho nei ma kekahi ʻāina ʻē. ʻAʻole kēlā kou ʻāina ponoʻī.”

Ma ko Wong-Kalu aʻo ʻana aku i nā papa ʻelua no kāna oli i haku ai ʻo “Haʻakei Nā Mauna o Hawaiʻinuiākea,” ua hāpai aʻela ʻo ia i nā manaʻo politika i haku ʻia ma ke oli i pili i nā kai ʻewalu o Hawaiʻi. 

Ua hoʻohalahala aku ʻo Wong-Kalu i nā Hawaiʻi no ko lākou hoʻouna ʻole ʻana mai i ke kālā i Hawaiʻi nei e like me kā nā lāhui Polenekia ʻē aʻe e hana aku ai. 

“Inā ʻaʻole lākou e noho ana ma laila, waiho lākou i nā koho pāloka no ke keʻena politika,” wahi āna. “Uku lākou i ka ʻauhau ma nā mokuʻāina ʻē aʻe. Akā, ʻaʻole lākou hoʻouna i ke kālā e like me ka hana a nā poʻe Polenekia ʻē aʻe no ko lākou mau kulāiwi ponoʻī. ʻO ka poʻe Tonga mā, hele lākou a puni ka honua, hana, a hoʻouna aku i ke kālā i ka home. Hele mai ka poʻe Hawaiʻi i ʻaneʻi i ʻAmelika nei, a hoʻouna kā naʻe lākou i ka mea waiwai ʻole i ka home.” 

ʻAʻole ʻo ia i kāohi i ka hoʻohalahala ʻana i ka hopena a ko nā Hawaiʻi neʻe ʻana i Las Vegas. “Kipa mai nā kānaka i ʻaneʻi no ka piliwaiwai ʻana. Akā naʻe, ʻaʻole nō kēia ko kākou ʻāina, mai nō a hoʻokiʻekiʻe ma ʻaneʻi, no ka mea, ua hana kekahi kanaka i kekahi paipai kālaiʻāina no ka hōʻumeʻume ʻana i ko kākou lāhui iā Las Vegas,” wahi āna. 

“ʻO Hawaiʻi ko kākou kulāiwi. ʻO kākou, ʻaʻole pono e noi haʻahaʻa i lalo o haʻi no ko kākou ʻāina ponoʻī. ʻAʻole pono e ʻimi aku ma waho i nā haʻina e hoʻoponopono ʻia ai ko kākou pilikia hoʻokele waiwai a kālaiʻāina hoʻi,” wahi āna. “Pono iā kākou ke hoʻomalu mai i ko kākou mau pilikia ponoʻī ma kekahi ʻano i kūpono iā kākou iho. A, ʻo nā malihini e hele mai i Hawaiʻi, pono iā lākou ke aʻo mai i ke ʻano kūpono e noho pū ai me kākou. Akā, ʻaʻole hiki ke hana ʻia pēlā ma muli o ko kākou kūlana kūikawā politika.” 

A, ua hāpai aʻela ʻo ia i kēia nīnau i kāna papa, “He aha ke kumu o kou huakaʻi ʻana i ʻaneʻi nei?” 

ʻO nā mea nāna i pane aku no Las Vegas, Monekana, a me Mikikana, na lākou nō i hōʻike mai i ko lākou makemake e hoʻopili iā Hawaiʻi a me nā Hawaiʻi. ʻO Sandi Brown, he kupa no Kauaʻi e noho nei ma Las Vegas, a ʻōlelo ʻo ia me ka walohia i kāna mau hana no ka hoʻopili mau ʻana iā Hawaiʻi, i loko nō o kona haʻalele ʻana no ʻAmelika i nā makahiki 1980. 

“Ua hele mai nei nō wau no ka noho pū ʻana me nā kānaka i pili loa i ke kulāiwi, nā kānaka e ʻōlelo me ka ikaika,” wahi a Brown. 

Penei i pane aku ai ʻo Pōmaikaʻi Gaui no ʻUta, “Hoʻāʻo wau e mālama i kēlā pilina a makamaka. ʻAʻohe noʻu wale nō, no kaʻu mau keiki naʻe. Hele mai lākou i ʻUtah no ka hoʻopili ʻana iaʻu nei. No laila, pono e paʻa koʻu kahua.” 

ʻO nā keiki he ʻekolu a Gaui no ʻUta, na lākou i neʻe i Hawaiʻi, a i loko nō o ko ia nei komo ʻana i nā ʻahahui sivila Hawaiʻi, ʻo kēia kona hele mua ʻana i ka ʻahahui o CNHA. 

“Makemake wau e hāpai mau i ka lamakū no nā Hawaiʻi o kēia mua aku. Ua hele kākou a maʻa i kēia mau moʻomeheu ʻē aʻe. Maʻalahi ka ʻaelike ʻoluʻolu ʻana, pēlā ke ʻano Hawaiʻi, akā, pono iā kākou ke hoʻomau aku.” 

ʻAʻohe hoihoi iki o Wong-Kalu iā Las Vegas: “E ko kākou ʻohana ma ʻaneʻi, pehea lā ʻoukou e noho nei ma kēia wahi ʻāina wela!” 

“Inā puni ʻoe i ka noho ʻana ma ʻaneʻi nei, ʻaʻole pilikia, maikaʻi, akā, mai nō a poina i ke kulāiwi,” wahi āna. “He kuleana ko kākou i ko kākou moʻomeheu, nā loina, nā kuanaʻike e mau ai ua mau loina nei i kēia kenekulia aʻe. Aia nō ia iā kākou, no kākou wale iho nō ke kuleana, ʻaʻole no haʻi ala.”

 Ua kākoʻo ʻia kēia papahana e ka ʻOhana o Harry Nathaniel, Levani Lipton, ka ʻOhana Mar, a me Lisa Kleissner.