2001: Pain and patriotism
Rep. Mark Takai of Pearl City was among the Hawai'i residents who gathered to pray at the State Capitol three days after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
By Lee Cataluna
Advertiser Columnist
On the east side of the island of Kaho'olawe, Kanapou, there is a bay where bits and pieces of the world wash ashore.
The name "Kaho'olawe" itself refers to the ocean currents that carry from one land to another, bringing and taking, shaping and changing.
Firefighters raise the U.S. flag at Ground Zero on Sept. 11, not long after the terrorist attacks that killed thousands, altered a skyline and mobilized a nation.
In this same way, all of Hawai'i was touched by waves from other shores this past year. We watched as pieces of events that occurred far away washed up on our beaches. We saw things we thought were permanent to our islands pulled away in the tide.
There is no way to overstate the effects of the terrorist attacks on America. In truth, we still haven't fully realized all the ways in which the events of Sept. 11 have changed us. Some are obvious: We are now afraid of things that previously never crossed our minds. Others are more subtle, as if there has been a shift in our core values that we can't quite name and can't describe. We just know things that used to be important don't seem as big anymore.
Along with the intangible emotions that swept over us, feelings ranging from grief to pride, horror to resolve; the terrorist attacks brought immediate, tangible changes to our islands. The tourist industry was hit as if by a tsunami. Airlines, hotels, restaurants, shops and activities are still struggling to surface from the wave of destruction. Thousands lost jobs. Thousands more hang in the balance.
State legislators called a special session to come up with ways to send out lifeboats to the economy. Lawmakers ended up giving millions of dollars to tourism promotion, boosting assistance to the unemployed, while putting off most other looming concerns to the regular session next month.
This past year made it impossible to cling to the old notion that Hawai'i is in any way remote and disconnected from the rest of the world. Sure, the Asian Development Bank Conference went on without a hint of the international outrage and violent protests that were anticipated, and, yes, that was chalked up to Hawai'i's relative inaccessibility. But when anthrax was found in the mail in D.C. and Florida, panic set in here as well. We felt connected. We felt just as vulnerable as the rest of the country.
Dazed survivors of the collision of a U.S. submarine and the Japanese fisheries training ship Ehime Maru were brought ashore after the accident.
USS Arizona survivor Joe Langdell remembered Pearl Harbor poignantly on the 60th anniversary.
Jeff Freye got a hug from wife Rhonda, daughter Hannah and son Noah upon the return of his P-3 Orion aircraft from a six-month deployment that included missions over Afghanistan.
An outbreak of dengue fever traced back to Tahiti threatened to take hold in our islands. It made us realize how easy it is for trouble to slip in unnoticed and how quickly someone else's problem can take hold and become a problem of our own.
The sinking of the Ehime Maru by the Navy submarine USS Greeneville turned the world's eyes to Hawai'i's waters and brought up hard questions of responsibility, accountability and culpability.
The ebb and flow of 2001 took away parts of Hawai'i we thought we could count on. Take Liberty House: We knew of its financial troubles, but who could have ever dreamed that by Christmas, the familiar LH would be gone and we'd be shopping at Macy's.
Now we find ourselves trying to imagine a Hawai'i without two competing airlines. That's a rogue wave we didn't see coming.
Hawai'i Army National Guard soldiers became a common sight at airports here and throughout the nation after Sept. 11.
We also watched rip tides tear at the public-school system. The teachers' strike brought long-simmering resentments to a head, and at times, it looked like the entire school year would be a wash. In the end, though, the state and the teachers union came to terms, the core conflict never felt resolved and teachers went back to work with the seeds of resentment still buried deep.
Then, another unexpected blow. Superintendent of Education Paul LeMahieu walked away from his job. He offered his resignation hoping the Board of Education members wouldn't accept it. They did. The leadership of the public schools was gone while the complexities of complying with the Felix consent decree swirled and threatened. It was a year of great instability for Hawai'i's schools.
We watched the rise and fall of local politicians in a year of campaign spending violations, a mandatory ethics class, surprise news conferences and the felony conviction of a city councilman.
We were witness to the stunning setback and triumphant return of University of Hawai'i football coach June Jones, who suffered life-threatening injuries in a car crash in February and then came back to lead the Warrior football team through a season of surprising success.
To label 2001 as a bad year does great disservice to the positive forces at work. Change is often not easy, but it is necessary and healthy nonetheless. The past year brought a renewed commitment to American democracy and a deeper understanding to many of what it means to be free.
The flag was everywhere after Sept. 11. Pongi Tevaga, at a Waikiki booth, mixed patriotism and patience as business took a downturn.
The survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor underscored this growing feeling of patriotism as they gathered together in solemn ceremony to mark 60 years since that terrible day. They shared with younger generations their example of duty, sacrifice and, ultimately, the power of forgiveness.
The events of 2001 brought personal reflection and, for some, the compassion that comes with insight. The events got us talking about racism in new and direct ways. It got us talking about civil liberties. It made us see ourselves as part of a whole.
The waves of change cleared space where new growth can begin. Like Kaho'olawe, life endures through hardship and in some ways, is enriched by it. Hawai'i is fertile ground now for new ideas and good plans; a rehabilitation, a remediation, a reclaiming of who we are and what we can be.
Advertiser library photos
Honolulu police officers and firefighters came out en masse for the Candlelight Memorial Service at Punchbowl, two days after the strikes on New York and Washington.
Public school teachers in Hawai'i walked out of their classrooms and onto the picket line in April. The strike lasted more than three weeks and drew national and international attention.
The Maui Bronco All-Stars returned to Kahului on Aug. 17 after bucking the odds and winning the Bronco World Series championship in Monterey, Calif.
Lee Cataluna's column runs Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Reach her at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.
