Stand beside us at Kamehameha rallies
By Diane Plotts, Robert Kihune, J. Douglas Ing, Constance Lau, Nainoa Thompson and Dee Jay Mailer
The Kamehameha Schools' admissions preference policy was overturned in a split decision by a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals panel. Then the plaintiff's attorney compared us to racist segregationists in the pre-civil rights South.
His remarks are profoundly insulting to Kamehameha Schools and to the memory of Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, who sought only to correct the harms created by the dispossession of her people — our Islands' first inhabitants. His remarks are offensive to every one here who embraces the wonderful blend of ethnicities and cultures that make our Islands so special.
The outpouring of aloha and support we have received from Hawaiians and non-Hawaiians alike, since Tuesday, has done much to soothe the sting of those ugly words. E-mails and phone calls have poured in from across the country from those who understand our educational mission and are encouraging us to persevere.
All of them ask: What can we do to help?
We find solace and great pride in our students like this Kapalama campus sophomore, who wrote: "Today was definitely a day filled with emotions ... but we still fight on. We will still continue to perpetuate the legacy that our princess left behind so that her people could succeed, we will still remain strong through all oppositions and we will continue to look to Ke Akua for guidance and understanding. Today may have been a very sad day, but as I saw my peers and teachers standing together, hand in hand in Bishop Memorial Chapel, I've never felt more proud for my culture, my heritage and my school. May the Lord bless us all during this time."
It is clear from the e-mails, phone calls to radio shows and letters to The Honolulu Advertiser that many in our community are very angry at this ruling. Those who oppose Kamehameha Schools are hoping that this anger will divide the Hawaiian community, because that will make it easier for Hawaiians to fail.
For the sake of our precious island community, we must not let this happen. Let us stand together to protect the culture that forms the basis of our values and way of life in Hawai'i nei. Please join us tomorrow.
Imua, Kamehameha.
Diane Plotts, Robert Kihune, J. Douglas Ing, Constance Lau and Nainoa Thompson are Kamehameha Schools trustees, and Dee Jay Mailer is the schools' chief executive officer. They wrote this commentary for The Advertiser.
Aug. 2, 2005, will forever be embedded in our memory as one of the darkest days of our lives.
