FOCUS
Military, protest traditions learn to coexist

By Mike Leidemann
Advertiser Staff Writer

Familiarity breeds respect — at least when it comes to Hawai'i's military and its war critics.

The military and protest traditions have maintained a long-standing history of mutual respect for each other on the Islands. At top, several hundred people turned out on March 29 to voice their support for U.S. troops, while war protesters rallied on March 20, above. Advertiser library photos • March, 2003

While the Iraq war is as hotly debated and divisive in Hawai'i as anywhere, the tone and physical nature of the protests are noticeably different here, according to those on both sides of the issue.

"There seems to be more respect all around. There's a clear respect for both points of view and a willingness to accept the others for who they are," said the Rev. Wayne Surface, pastor at Mapunapuna's Ohana Baptist Church, which draws more than half of its congregation from nearby military bases.

The respect is born of decades when two seemingly opposite traditions thrived in a multicultural island environment:

• More than 50,000 active-duty military and their families from every branch of the service live in Hawai'i. Thousands more military retirees call the state home. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was one of the seminal events in Hawai'i's modern history, giving residents a lasting personal perspective on world events. That, in turn, has helped foster an active military-community relationship that's more symbiotic than confrontational.
• At the same time, the Islands have a rich history of protest, residents say. Beyond the anti-war rallies, the Islands have seen intense debate, and occasionally bitter struggles, over such issues as land and water use, women's rights, housing, labor unions, the Navy's bombing of Kaho'olawe, Japanese internments, Hawaiian sovereignty, civil rights and the continuing presence of the military itself.

Those struggles have legitimized and helped war protesters find acceptance here even within populations and communities that otherwise support the military, longtime activists say.

Of course, there have been exceptions, like the confrontation that erupted last week when war protesters and troop supporters went nose-to-nose and had to be separated by police. ROTC offices at the University of Hawai'i were set afire during Vietnam War protests in the 1960s, and Dr. Willis Butler says he suffered a broken rib when he was held down and kicked by several military men as he protested the war during the same period here.

"Even so, things are generally a little more mellow here," he said the other day. "Protests here are muted on both sides. There's a gentleness about everything in Hawai'i that extends even to protest."

"I've never felt particularly vilified," said John Witeck, who led rallies against the Vietnam War as a member of the Students for a Democratic Society and went on to be a union organizer and government worker. "There's very little hostility directed against us."

In return, Hawai'i protesters speak softly to make their point.

"There's a lot of aloha in our protests," said Kyle Kajahiro, program director for the American Friends Service Committee in Hawai'i. "You can feel the respect on both sides, no matter how passionate the debate."

"You don't get the sort of shouting and loud rhetoric you find elsewhere," added Sister Patty Johnson of the Sisters of St. Joseph order, which has been active in war protests here. "There's more openness to differing opinions than I've seen before."

Phill Tugadi, left, holds onto a corner of a large American flag to demonstrate his support for U.S. troops in Iraq, while confronting war protester Travis Thompson during a March 29 rally. Advertiser library photo • March 29, 2003

"By the nature of our isolation, you won't see huge crowds like you do in San Francisco, where people can drive in from all over the West Coast, from Seattle to San Diego," said Carolyn Hadfield, one of the spearheads for recent rallies at Pearl Harbor and Ala Moana Beach Park. "Even so, the response has been tremendous. We've never had this level of protest, not even during Vietnam."

Even more people have chosen to express their worries and opinions in less overt ways, activists say.

"In parts of our community there's a still an old plantation value on not generating conflict, so some people won't come to a rally but will express concerns in other ways," Kajahiro said. The anti-war sentiments show up at candlelight vigils, church services, teach-ins, in private discussions and the thousands of people who offer a friendly wave or shaka sign as they drive by a protest, Hadfield said.

Because the protest tradition in the Islands cuts across so many lines, those who have attended the recent rallies against the war have been more diverse than ever, organizers say.

While the Vietnam War protests were widely identified with young people, the new movement seems to draw from all age groups and segments of the community.

"In the old days, we had just a few groups that did the organizing," Witeck said. "Today there are more coalitions spreading the word. Announcements go out over the Internet or by e-mail and reach a much broader spectrum of society."

Church groups, labor organizations, anti-globalization groups, Hawaiian activists, even military personnel are among the participants in today's rallies, Witeck said.

"Many of them can't say so publicly, but there's a large number of military people who oppose this war. There's an even bigger group who are definitely not hostile to us," he said.

Pastor Surface, whose congregation is drawn from families at Hickam Air Force Base, Pearl Harbor, and Tripler Army Medical Center, said he has seen some people with conflicted feelings, but for the most part a majority supports the president.

"Whether they agree or not, they know what they signed up for and they're ready to do their jobs," he said.

The intertwined histories of the military and protest in Hawai'i cause many people to walk a fine line when they talk about the military here.

Members of Congress from Hawai'i all are strong supporters of the military and its presence in the Islands but all have expressed at least some reservations about the war with Iraq.

Sens. Dan Inouye and Daniel Akaka, as well as Rep. Neil Abercrombie all opposed a resolution in the fall that allowed President Bush to go to war without the concurrence of the United Nations; newly elected Rep. Ed Case also expressed concerns about the start of the war.

Abercrombie might have summed up the state's whole ambivalence on the topic with a press release he issued the night the war started. It was headlined: "Abercrombie opposes war, supports troops with web site links."

The division hits families, too.

"My dad was in the military, and we had plenty of issues back in the Vietnam time," Sister Johnson said. "But there's a big difference between respecting those who are following orders and saying you can't criticize at all."

Eighty-year-old Oliver Hashizume said he respects those, including his own family members, who are protesting today.

"It's a totally different situation and different kind of war today," said Hashizume, a squad leader who saw three years of combat in France and Italy with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team during World War II. "Everybody has their own mind, and they can say what they want. I can't say they're right or wrong. Everyone is entitled to their opinion."

Reach staff writer Mike Leidemann at 525-5460 or mleidemann@honoluluadvertiser.com.