TESTIMONY OF THOUSANDS

AFTER SPENDING A CENTURY TUCKED AWAY IN AN ARCHIVE, THE K UE PETITIONS WERE LOCATED. BEARING WITNESS TO THE TREMENDOUS EFFORT HAWAIIANS MADE TO AVOID ANNEXATION BY THE UNITED STATES, THE DOCUMENTS ARE PROVING INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT. BY KATHRYN DRURY WAGNER

ometimes the truth will set you free. And sometimes the truth is trapped in a box, curled up at the edges, waiting for you to set it free. So it has been with the K Petitions.

In 1897, the United States, founded upon the belief that a just government can exist only by the consent of the governed, is preparing to take a nations life with all the complacent assurance of an old time stage villain, reported Miriam Michelson in a piece published in the San Francisco Call on Sept. 30 that year. For Hawaii has not asked for annexation. There are 100,000 people on the islands. Of these not 3 percent have declared for annexation. To the natives the loss of nationality is hateful, aberrant. Later in her article, Michelson writes, At Honolulu, I had asked a prominent white man to give me some idea of the native Hawaiians character. They wont resent anything, he said, contemptuously. They havent a grain of ambition. They care for nothing except extremely simple and easy living. They have no perseverance, they have no backbone. Theyre unfit. The K Petitions show otherwise.

DISCOVERY
In 1996, graduate student Noenoe Silva was about a year into her dissertation work when she saw a small picture of a page of the K Petitions in a booklet, a guide to an exhibit that had been held in the small gallery space at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. On a visit there, she went specifically to find this petition, but says, I didnt know how big it was or how important it was. The documents Silva tracked down that day are printed in Hawaiian and English and titled, Palapala Hoopii Kue Hoohui Aina, or Petition Protesting Annexation. Theyre 556 pages of signatures gathered in the fall of 1897, and presented to the U.S. Congress as proof that an overwhelming majority of Hawaiis citizenry, both Native Hawaiian and non, were opposed to annexation to the U.S.
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HISTORICAL EVENTS
01/17/1893

They reflect the work of three organizations, the Hui Aloha ina (divided into two groups, one for men and one for women) and the Hui Klaiina. Fanning out in a massive petition drive in support of Queen Liliuokalani, the Hui Aloha ina gathered more than 21,269 signatures, and the Hui Klaiina got 17,000 signatures, totaling around 38,000 names. According to Silvas book, Aloha Betrayed: Native Hawaiian Resistance to American Colonialism, Even if some people signed both petitions, the total number is impressive given that the population of Kanaka Maoli and mixed-blood persons reported by the Hawaiian Commission census for that year was 39,000. Now a Ph.D. and professor in the Political Science Department of the University of Hawaii at Mnoa, Silva says the petitions were for Hawaiians a way to try to be heard by Americans. The American press was receiving regular, very racist and disparaging dispatches from Honolulu about who was in favor of annexation. Really lying, pretending there wasnt any resistance. Silva also connected with her own family history, as she found the name of her great-great-great-grandmother among the signers of the petition. The information was always there and no one was looking, says Lynette Cruz, an assistant professor of anthropology at Hawaii Pacific University and president of the Ka Lei Maile Alii Hawaiian Civic Club. Noenoe was paying attention. The results have been information and a profound connection. We had been indoctrinated with someone elses history, until these came along. These names belong to us; they are not foreign.

Queen Liliuokalani is forced to yield her authority by a group of businessmen, who form their own government. Acting without the permission of the U.S. State Department, John Stevens, the U.S. Minister to Hawaii, recognizes this government and declares Hawaii a protectorate. The provisional government asks outgoing President Benjamin Harrison and Congress to annex Hawaii, and Harrison sends a treaty to the Senate to be confirmed.

04/04/1893

Grover Cleveland is inaugurated president. Respecting the protests of Queen Liliuokalani and her Hawaiian Kingdom envoy, he withdraws the treaty from the Senates consideration and appoints a commissioner to investigate the overthrow, which is determined to be illegal.

THE DOCUMENTS, UNVEILED

ilva explains how the first display of the petitions, in 1998, came to be. Nlani Minton got a bunch of people together at the Bishop Museum, says Silva. The Bishop Museum had allocated no money to observe the 100th year since annexation, but it became clear during our meeting that they needed to do something. The museum was able to get some funding and media attention, and photocopies of all of the 556 pages of the K Petitions went on display at the Bishop Museum, Silva says. The National Archives would not permit the museum to display the individual pages of the originals, Silva says, but did send the documents, and allowed them to be shown in stacks. Copies were also shown at the state Capitol. The originals were returned, and they live in the Records of the U.S. Senate, Record Group 46, at the National Archives and Records Administration, publication number M1897. I believe the K Petitions carry the mana of our ancestors that embodies our rights of and to selfdetermination, says Nlani Minton via an email interview. In the recovered evidence, the power of the people and our love for our homeland cannot be overestimated and may set precedence for other indigenous peoples and nations who have endured similar experiences. Minton has presented the petitions to audiences around the world, such as at Pacific regional forums, American Indian forums, the Hague Peace Appeals and the Indigenous Law Institute.

People still make a point of telling me, what the discovery of the petitions meant to them, says UH professor Noenoe Silva, Ph.D. Its been pretty significant.

1894

The provisional government proclaims a new Republic of Hawaii, which is officially recognized by the United States.
04/04/1897

Annexation supporter President William McKinley is inaugurated.

They are 556 pages of signatures gathered in the fall of 1897, presented to the U.S. Congress as proof that an overwhelming majority of Hawaiis citizenry, both Native Hawaiian and non, were opposed to annexation to the U.S.
PHOTO BY A A RO N K. Y O SHINO

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Many extraordinary events have taken place since their return and many tears have been wept by descendants who have seen the signatures of their loved ones, perhaps for the first time, and of others they never knew who tried to protect their destiny and ours.

06/1897

A treaty of annexation is signed between McKinley and three representatives of the Republic of Hawaii and presented to the Senate to be ratified. Queen Liliuokalani files a diplomatic protest.
FALL 1897

Hoping to stop the annexation, the Hui Aloha ina and Hui Klaiina conduct massive petition drives.
12/6/1897

THE NATIVE HAWAIIAN ROLL COMMISSION

The historical significance of signing a petition is not lost on Clyde Namuo, executive director of the Native Hawaiian Roll Commission. Hawaiis Act 195 of 2011 acknowledged Hawaiians as the states only indigenous people, and required that a certified roll of Hawaiians be taken. As the commission began to deliberate, this seemed very exclusive, says Namuo. Gov. Waihee talked about the K Petitions and how the people who signed that were not necessarily Hawaiians, but it provided them an opportunity to provide support. We wanted to re-create that situation here, where we satisfy the provisions of Act 195 but also use the opportunity to build unity among all people of Hawaii. The commission decided on a two-part solution. For people who want to support what Hawaiians are doing and not interested in helping form a government, they can sign a petition, whether they are Hawaiian or not, supporting the idea that the sovereignty of the Hawaiians was never relinquished. The second part is a roll of Hawaiians who meet certain requirements, set out by Act 195: 1. Be an individual who is a descendant of the aboriginal peoples who, prior to 1778, occupied and exercised sovereignty in the Hawaiian Islands, the area that now constitutes the state of Hawaii; or an individual who is one of the indigenous, native people of Hawaii and who was eligible in 1921 for the programs authorized by the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, or a direct lineal descendant of that individual; 2. Maintain a significant cultural, social or civic connection to the Native Hawaiian community; 3. Wish to participate in the organization of the Native Hawaiian governing entity; and 4. Must be 18 years of age or older. To get on that list, people must fill out an enrollment form, a process slated to kick off the third week of July and run for 12 months, says Namuo. We will turn over whatever we have and whatever has been confirmed as part of this list to the Gov. Abercrombie. People can sign up in person at outreach events, or online. Our strategy is to get as many sponsors as possible, such as the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Kamehameha Schools, he says, both for outreach and for easier verification of people who have already proven their ancestry. Documents that are acceptable proof of ancestry include birth certificates, death certificates, baptismal certificates, church records, entries in Bibles and personal affidavits. The list and petition will both be turned over to the governor. After that, its up to the Native Hawaiian community to take this to the next stage, says Namuo. Most people would agree that its to have a constitutional convention and elect delegates to attend the convention.

P HOTO BY AARON K. Y O SHINO

A co-publisher of the K Petitions, Nlani Minton. Minton is the director of the Ike Ao Pono program at the UH School of Nursing, helping graduate more than 150 native Hawaiian nurses.

With the return of the petitions, Minton writes, The names of many unknown and forgotten heroes were recovered. Not only the prominent organizers of the petition process, such as Joseph Nawahi, Emma Aima Nawahi, Kuaihelani Campbell and other leaders but also every person who signed the petitions, whose descendants now know and have proof of their great efforts and heroism. Many extraordinary events have taken place since their return and many tears have been wept by descendants who have seen the signatures of their loved ones, perhaps for the first time, and of others they never knew who tried to protect their destiny and ours. From the groupings of the signers on every island, we also now have a map of where people were living and, sometimes, how they were related.

Delegates arrive in Washington, D.C., with the 556 pages of petition signatures, which were given to the Senate Dec. 9. Ultimately, only the Hui Aloha ina version of the petition was presented, because the Hawaiian groups did not wish to appear divided in their goals. Over the next two months, the delegates convince most senators not to vote for annexation, successfully defeating the treaty.
04/1898

M
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REPUBLISHING THE DOCUMENTS

inton and Silva compiled the documents in a book form, The Hui Aloha ina Anti-Annexation Petitions, 1897-1898. Its viewable online at the UHM library site.

The U.S. declares war on Spain, and wants Hawaii as a naval and troop base to fight the Spanish in the Philippines and on Guam. By July, the Newlands Resolution unilaterally annexes Hawaii.

The petitions also became available in an island-by-island format, via a company specializing in Hawaiian Kingdom-era books, Pae ina. It made purchasing sectionssuch as only Maui, or Oahu more accessible, according to Naia Lewis, whose family ran the company. While response to the books was very positive, she says via an email interview, It was very challenging to reprint historical documents. Its not like you can easily have mass [amounts] bound in a cost-effective way. We remain hopeful that one day we are able to provide these reprints again, but for now we are being patient and waiting to see what the future holds.
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Have they made a difference? Huge. And its only going to have more effect as people outside the community understand it.

The Memorial
An initiative for a K Petitions Memorial was once underway, but appears to have fizzled. A 2005 article in the Honolulu Advertiser reported the Office of Hawaiian Affairs granted a group called Ke Kiai $24,950 to begin planning and consulting for the project. The K Petitions Memorial Wall will provide a wahipana (a sacred place), a tangible symbol to N Oiwi o Hawaii, Native Hawaiians, for veneration of and a space to worship their kpuna in a respectful way, says a website about the project. Knowing the truth will strengthen our communities understanding of a key part of our history that reveals the fortitude and strength of our ancestors. Each of the islands with signatories will be represented by walls that bear the inscribed names of their kpuna from that island who signed the original petition. Its a lovely design; an artists rendering shows stone walls in concentric circles, with native plants, solar-lighting accents and benches for contemplation. Attempts to reach Ke Kiai were not successful.

P HOTO BY M ARK ARB EIT

Leon Siu, seen in a 2009 photo, has been an activist in many arenas, including working for the restoration of a Hawaiian sovereign nation.

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P HOTO C OURTESY LYNETTE C RUZ

Maile Meyer, founder and president of Native Books N Mea Hawaii, carried the copies in her store. We probably distributed thousands. Sometimes, people would come up to her, distraught because they couldnt find their family member, and I would tell them Dont worry, they are in there, because nearly every Hawaiian citizen signed it.

The K Name Signs Project was displayed last September at the Iolani Palace.

STILL BEING HEARD

THE PETITIONS MAY BE VOICES FROM THE PAST, BUT THEY ARE GETTING LOUDER.

been participating in the name project, and also performs Ka Lei Maile Alii: The Queens Women, a re-enactment based on Miriam Michelsons 1897 article. The K Name Signs Project has close to 2,200 placards now, Cruz says, explaining that volunteers check the names against a database for proper spelling or contact the descendants to double check. Sometimes the descendants will then want to participate in the project, and will make their ancestors name card, put their mana in it, says Cruz. The display of silent witnesses is potent, she says. People stand there and cry. Or stop and chant. People can relate to this so quickly. The K Name Signs Project will reach a larger audience in October, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., during the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs Convention. Volunteers are welcome to help make or lay out signs, says Cruz; contact her at palolo@hawaii.rr.com. The K Petitions are so powerful. Im really into them right now, says Meyer, calling the documents pivotal in the next part of the Hawaiian sovereignty movement. Have they made a difference? Huge. And its only going to have more effect as people outside the community understand it. Hawaiians anticipated the problems with annexation, and fought successfully against it, says Siu. And if werent for the illegal actions later by the U.S., they were successful.

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or example, the K Name Signs Project, which began in 2009, displays placards bearing the names of people who signed the K Petitions. A coalition of Hawaiian-rights groups, the Hawaiian Independence Action Alliance, placed about 1,800 placards for a February 2011 demonstration at McKinley High School. The signs were put into the schools lawn near a statue of President William McKinley, positioned to protest that the bronze statue is holding in his hand a historically inaccurate item, a Treaty of Annexation. We wanted to demonstrate our solidarity and the continuity of the effort to inform the U.S. that Hawaiians have always been against annexation, that there was an overwhelming objection, says Leon Siu, who identifies as a Hawaiian national and who is a frequent contributor to the Hawaiian Kingdom.net. We want to go back to that point, that we stand as a people. The signs have also been used in displays at Iolani Palace and in Thomas Square. These are not just names on a placard. We are really mindful, says Cruz. The Oahu-based Ka Lei Maile Alii Hawaiian Civic Club has

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