* * * POSTPONED * * *

Census 2020 Event Sponsorship Information

Targeting Native Hawaiian Communities across Hawai‘i and the Continent

Welina mai kākou!

As we plan for Census 2020 and take an account of Native Hawaiians across the United States, Papa Ola Lōkahi (POL) will be providing a one-time sponsorship in the amount of $200.00 (two hundred dollars) that may be used to support activities and/or events:

• That support Native Hawaiians and their communities to complete census gathering work;
• That MUST occur between April 1, 2020 and July 31, 2020.

To be eligible to receive these funds:

• Your organization must have a 501(c)3 designation or fiscal sponsor;
• Your organization must be in good standing with the State of Hawai‘i (Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs)

If your organization is interested and meets the above eligibility criteria, the next steps are:

1. Submit application via link (or click on image above) or complete and return the attached application form.
2. First come, first served!
3. Please submit a final report within two-weeks (2) after your activity/event. The report form is included for your convenience. Please include photos.  A picture can be worth a thousand words.

Again, mahalo for your interest and participation in this engagement opportunity.  Be creative!  The Census 2020, critical for counting Native Hawaiians, will benefit our communities, which will lead to overall improvement of Hawaiian health and well-being. Papa OlaLōkahi looks forward to a continued collaborative partnership.

He aloha nō,

Sheri Daniels, EdD

Executive Director – Papa Ola Lōkahi

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Mai ka wehena o ke alaula i Kumukahi a i ka nāpoʻo ana a ka lā i ka mole ʻolu ʻo Lehua, ʻanoʻai kākou me ke aloha e nā hoa makeʻe ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi. ʻO kēia mahina nei ka mahina ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi! No laila, e kūpaʻa kākou i ka ʻōlelo makuahine o kēia ʻāina aloha. Eia nō au e hoʻolaha nei i ka moʻolelo kaulana i nā kama a Kamawaelualani. ʻO ia hoʻi ka moʻolelo no Kaluaikoʻolau, ke kāʻeʻaʻeʻa o nā pali Kalalau, kāna wahine ʻo Piʻilani, ka wahine i molia i ke ola, a me Kaleimanu, kā lāua lei peʻe poli.

            I ka makahiki 1889, ua hele a ʻula ko Koʻolau pāpālina me he mōhala ʻana lā o ka pua lehua i ka nahele. ʻAkahi nō ʻo ia a ʻike i kekahi hōʻailona o ka maʻi kaʻawale, ʻo ia hoʻi ka maʻi lepera. Hū aʻela ke kaumaha o nā mākua i ka hōʻailona like ma kā lāua keikikāne. Ua hiki maila ka mea i hana no ke aupuni, nona ka inoa ʻo Pokipala. Wahi āna, pono ʻo Koʻolau e hele i ke kauka. Loaʻa iā Koʻolau i ka maʻi lepera, a ua kauoha ʻia ʻo ia e hele i Kalawao, kahi i kapa ʻia ʻo ka lua kupapaʻu kanu ola.

            Eia naʻe, ʻaʻole ʻo Koʻolau i ʻae i ke kauoha a lilo ʻo ia me kona ʻohana i mea kipi i ke aupuni. I ka makahiki 1892, ua haʻalele lākou iā Mānā a hele i Kalalau i ke ʻala lauaʻe. Ma laila no lākou i noho ai a hiki i ko Koʻolau lāua ʻo Kaleimanu hele ʻana i ke ala hoʻi ʻole mai. Aloha nō.

            ʻAʻole ʻo Koʻolau me kona ʻohana i hele iki i Kalawao. Aia nō ke aloha i ka nohona ʻohana, ʻo ia ka mea nui. I kuʻu wā liʻiliʻi aʻu i lohe ai i kēia moʻolelo i hāʻule iho mai ka lehelehe mai o kuʻu Tūtū. Kamaʻāina ʻo ia i ua moʻolelo nei i kona Tūtū, ʻo Kūʻaihelemoku Paʻakīkī no Wainiha. Nāna i piʻi aʻela i Kalalau a lawe i ka mea ʻai i ka ʻohana Kaluaikoʻolau. Kākoʻo kuʻu Tūtū kualua iā lākou ma muli o kāna keikikāne i hala ma Kalawao me ka maʻi kaʻawale. Wahi a Piʻilani, aloha wale ia mau he moelepo i nalohia mai nā maka. Aloha.

Na Leikuluwaimaka

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Mai ka manawa ʻo ke poʻo, ka haka ʻolu o nā poʻe hulu mamo mai kikilo mai, a i nā kihi ʻehā o ke kino, me ka ʻauhau iwi hilo e konikoni ʻana i ka mauli Hawaiʻi, a hiki i ka poli o ka wāwae, kahi e lewa kūnoni ana ka mākaʻikaʻi o ke ola kānaka. E nā poʻe mākeʻe ʻōlelo, ka ʻī, ka mahi, ka palena, nona ua mau hiʻohiʻona e kāhiko a hoʻokānaka ʻana iā kākou a pau. ʻAnoʻai me ke aloha.

Ua laha ʻia nō kēia wā kūlaia ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, a e lilo kēia wahi ʻōlelo i wahi hunahuna ʻuʻuku o ka ʻike na ka poʻe lehulehu no kēia mea he iwi hilo, e pili ana nō ʻo ia i ka ʻoihana ola kino a me ke kūpono ʻana o ka mauli Hawaiʻi. Ua ʻowaka mai ka leo o kūpuna mā a hoʻopuka ʻia maila kahi ʻōlelo noʻeau penei: “Ola nā iwi.” He ʻōlelo ia e ‘ī aku i ka poʻe, e mālama hoʻi i nā poʻe kūlaiwi o kūpuna mā, me kō lākou mau iwi i waiho mālie ʻia i nā one hānau o kākou, i mea e ola hoʻi ia mau iwi.

Wahi a G. P. Judd ma kāna puke i hoʻopuka ʻia ʻo Anatomia, “Ua oi aku ka loa a me ka nui o keia [iwi hilo] i ko na iwi a pau o ke kino.” Me ka manaʻo, he iwi koʻikoʻi paha kēia i ke kino o ke kānaka, he mea nui e kālele aku. Kainō wau, kapa ʻia kēia iwi he iwi hilo i kēia ʻōlelo nei, “No ka hemo paha [o ka iwi hilo] ua hikiia i ke kaula.” Hilo ʻia kēia iwi i ke kahua o ke kānaka, paʻa maila ke kahua e kūkulu aku i ka hale, ke kino o ke kānaka. Wahi a ka lohe, ʻo ka iwi hilo ka iwi paʻa loa o ke kino holoʻokoʻa, kākaʻikahi nā mea i hiki iā ia ke haʻi ʻia.

He inoa ʻē aʻe kō ua iwi nei, he ʻauhau hoʻi. Hilo ʻia a paʻa ka ilina kūpuna i loko nō o ua iwi, a maliʻa paha, ʻo ia ke kumu o kona inoa e kapa ʻia nei he ʻauhau. Kū ka moʻo o ke kānaka i kona ʻauhau, ka iwi i ʻoi aʻe kona nui i nā iwi a pau loa o ke kino, ka “waihona” hoʻi o ka moʻokūʻauhau.

ʻIke mau ʻia kēia ʻōlelo ma nā mele, nā moʻolelo, a pēlā wale aku. “Konikoni ana i ka iwi hilo.” ʻUnuhi ʻia kēia ʻōlelo e Pūkuʻi, “throbbing to the very depths of the very core of one's being.” ʻO ka iwi hilo nō ka wahi e noho ana ka piko o ke kānaka. Puka maila ka mea kamahaʻo, a konikoni maila ka iwi hilo. Ua nani nō, ʻaʻohe mea ona e kana mai e kūpono hoʻi i ka wehewehena i kēia ʻano hana a ke kānaka. Me kēia mau ʻōlelo wau i hiki hoʻi i ka panina, i mea e ola ai nā iwi, e waiho hoʻi wau kēia i mua o ʻoukou e nā mea heluhelu,

ʻO wau nō me ke aloha, noelo i ka iwi hilo,

                                                                                                   Kahikinaokalā

#MahinaOleloHawaii #OleloHawaii #HawaiianLanguageMonth #meakulakaiapuni

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Aloha mai kākou,

There is a hearing scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, February 25, 2020, at 1:15 PM in room 016. Senate Bill 43, Senate Draft 1 (SB 43, SD1) proposes a statewide supplementary certification board for the practitioners of traditional native Hawaiian healing arts, where practitioners may be certified to practice.

We are sharing our testimony here because although we submitted it this morning, it did not make it into the posted testimonies.  It is not our intent to place blame as to why or how that happened, but to assure practitioners, student healers, our colleagues and the communities we serve that we care.  We have been involved in these discussions ongoing for 30 years; this is as important as it was in 1988.

So we present a bit of history and our testimony below.

Papa Ola Lōkahi is STRONGLY OPPOSED to the formation of a supplemental certification board for the certification of practitioners of traditional Hawaiian healing arts for three main reasons:  (1) the inappropriateness of State interference with Hawaiian traditions and customs, (2) the harm such State certification will impose on the most traditional practitioners of Hawaiian healing arts, (3) the inappropriateness of requiring all Kupuna Councils to adopt the standards of one particular council without courtesy of consultation.  Finally, POL would assert that the requirements in this bill are redundant, and that once we describe the policies and procedures around Kupuna Council coordination, some of the State’s questions will be satisfied.

The following documents are attached in support of our position:

1. Kupuna Councils – An Overview, 2020;
2. Kupuna Councils Eligibility and Application Policies and Procedures(approved August 2019); and
3. Chronology of Policy Events Relating to Traditional Hawaiian Healing Practices since 1985.

Papa Ola Lōkahi has been engaged in discussions with the Legislature for more than 30 years, and we’re grateful for the ongoing consultation.  These discussions have also included kupuna practitioners, the Native Hawaiian Health Care Systems and the Hawaiian-serving community health centers, including Wai‘anae Coast Comprehensive Health Center. 

Our guidance in the matter of certification comes from the Kahuna Statement issued by Hawai‘i’s kupuna practitioners at Kailua-Kona on October 31, 1998, which in short asserts that it is inappropriate for the State of Hawai‘i to regulate traditional Native Hawaiian practices; the right belongs to the Native Hawaiian community, as provided by Article XII, Section 7 of the State Constitution. 

This group of kūpuna were convened by POL following the passage on Act 162 in 1998.  A report was filed with the State Legislature that included the following statement:

We, the Undersigned Kupuna Practitioners of Hawaiian healing, have counseled and agree:

•  That we are only instruments in the healing process and that the true source of healing comes from the Almighty, known as Akua, Io, or God. It is this source that gives us our calling to practice;
• That the Legislature of the State of Hawai‘i is not knowledgeable in the healing traditions of the Hawaiian people; and
• That while we are grateful the Legislature has passed SB 1946, the blood quantum, licensure, and certification issues raised in the legislation are inappropriate and culturally unacceptable for government to ascertain. These are the kuleana of the Hawaiian community itself through kupuna who are performing these practices.

As a result of this strong statement from the masters of that time, the law was changed from one mandating POL to certify practitioners, to one requiring us to recognize Kupuna Councils of practitioners of Hawaiian healing traditions.  This is the language in HRS 453-2(c) and in Act 32, passed in 2019.

Certification of practitioners of Hawaiian healing arts would be like the State certifying kumu hula.  In both cases, the State lacks expertise in these Hawaiian customs, it is understood that the practitioners regulate themselves, and State regulation is in contempt of Article XII, Section 7 of the State’s Constitution.

Secondly, certification of practitioners would extend beyond students who take a few semesters and wish to offer services for third party reimbursement.  This measure would open the door to individuals who simply wish to be certified practitioners for commercial purposes to the detriment of perpetuating authentic Hawaiian practices.  Most damaging of all, this bill would outlaw kupuna practitioners who have been in lifelong apprenticeships, realizing the teachings of their grandparents or their kumu, serving their families and perhaps their communities.  Mandated certification would render them illegal practitioners.

Our third point is one that we believe will bring assurances, addressing both sections 2 and 3 of the bill. Involved in the recognition of Kupuna Councils for more than 20 years, Papa Ola Lōkahi did exactly what is called for in Section 2(a):  convened an ad hoc committee of practitioners from the traditional Native Hawaiian healing community, from multiple islands, and representing multiple practices to evaluate and codify policies and procedures around the recognition of Kupuna Councils.  These updated procedures were approved by our board in August 2019.  We subsequently disseminated the following to all seven recognized councils, including the Kupuna Council that is attached to Wai‘anae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, and three others that are currently exploring recognition: 

1. Be attached to a Native Hawaiian Health Care System, federally qualified health center, federally designated rural health center, or federally designated lookalike.
2. Develop guidelines for membership, authentication of practitioners and governance.
3. Be willing to provide annual updates of members, activities, and the Hawaiian healing traditions covered by its members.
4. Be willing to engage with other Kupuna Councils for the purpose of shared learning.

As this information has been conveyed to each of the seven Kupuna Councils, we are expecting that they have prepared or are preparing to submit reports to Papa Ola Lōkahi, as required in Section 3 of this measure.

Most importantly, each Kupuna Council defines for itself the criteria for recognition or authentication of Hawaiian healing practitioners, criteria for eligibility as a Kupuna Council member, and how it regulates or governs itself, as stated in Act 153 passed in 2005:  Each kupuna council shall (1) be independent; (2) not be a component of any state branch; (3) not be subject to chapters 91 and 92, Hawai‘i Revised Statutes; and (4) develop its own policies, procedures, and rules necessary or appropriate to certify traditional Hawaiian healers. 

Thus, it would be inappropriate to require that all Kupuna Councils’ certification standards synchronize with those articulated by Wai‘anae Community Kupuna Council because (1) each community is as different as are the different schools of teaching, and (2) Wai‘anae’s standards have not been shared with Papa Ola Lōkahi nor any of the other Kupuna Councils, according to our survey.

Papa Ola Lōkahi is coordinating Kupuna Councils that represent all islands and all healing practices. We took steps in 2019 to update and communicate, rendering Sections 2 and 3 of this measure redundant.

Let it be known that it is not necessary for a practitioner of Hawaiian healing traditions to be certified in order to practice.  Some whose testimonies are posted do earn a living through their healing practice. 

Practitioners who wish to be may apply to their nearest Kupuna Council to undergo the authentication process.

Hawaiian healing traditions are protected at the highest level constitutionally possible in Hawai‘i.  Indeed, Kupuna Councils exist not for practitioners to recognize themselves, but to provide the legislature a mechanism that satisfies concerns for standards of care, in a culturally grounded framework that was suggested by the kūpuna themselves.

Finally, we want to point out some of the cultural failings of this process:

1. This measure was introduced without the courtesy of prior consultation with Papa Ola Lōkahi board, staff, nor any of those who have participated in evaluating or developing the Kupuna Council recognition process.  To our knowledge, there has been no consultation with members of E Ola Mau, Kupuna Lā‘au Lapa‘au o Hawai‘i, ‘Aha Kūkā Ho‘oponopono, Hawaiian Lomilomi Association, nor with any other body of Hawaiian healing practitioners that have engaged in such discussions with Papa Ola Lōkahi.
2. Traditionally, Hawaiian healing practices have a strong spiritual component.  Given the separation of church and state, these distinctly spiritual practices cannot be legislated.

Papa Ola Lōkahi does not support this bill; therefore, we are also opposed to any proposed amendments.  Please know that we welcome the opportunity to engage in further discussions for mutual understanding.

We remain in strong OPPOSITION to SB 43 SD1. 

[Testimony, no attachment]

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