AMERICAN SCENE: Return of the Natives to Kahoolawe

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To members of the Ghana, the Navy's bombardment of Kahoolawe symbolizes what has happened to the Hawaiian islands and the native culture. Explains Walter Ritte, 32, of the latest expedition: "By bombing and shelling continually, the U.S. Government shows the same contempt for our land and inalienable rights as it did in 1898 [when the islands were annexed]." Ghana was founded four years ago on the neighboring island of Molokai to lead a fight for more public beaches, but the organization quickly spread through the islands and shifted to the much broader purpose of redressing native Hawaiians' political, economic and cultural grievances. Its members include kapuna (elders), farmers, fishermen, college graduates and even a smattering of white liberals. Most of them are middle class and in their mid-30s or older. Says Emmett Aluli, a physician and an Ghana leader: "We are the last generation to have known Hawaii the way it was before the tourist invasion threatened to turn this paradise into a giant condominium. This is our last chance to preserve what we have left."

Ghana's popularity reflects the growing resentment of Hawaii's 8,000 pure-blooded Polynesians and 140,000 citizens of mixed blood. In the land of their ancestors, they are greatly outnumbered by the islands' 720,000 other residents—predominantly Caucasians and Orientals. Barely half of the native Hawaiians have completed high school (v. 72% of the other islanders), most have menial jobs, and their annual income averages just under $10,000, about $1,000 less than that of the state as a whole. Moreover, according to a survey by Alu Like, a cultural organization, native Hawaiians "frequently report a loss of pride and bitterness resulting from historic loss of their family lands and their homeland." They also complain that public schools "ignore their identity, traditions and history."

By keeping up the pressure on Kahoolawe, the Ghana organization hopes to win some concessions. At the urging of the Ghana and other protest groups, the islands' congressional delegation has sponsored legislation to compensate native Hawaiians for lands lost after annexation—something like the 1971 grant of $962.5 million to Alaska's natives in settlement of their land claims. In addition, Senator Daniel Inouye has proposed a bill that would force the Navy to stop bombing Kahoolawe.

In a vain attempt to mollify the protesters, the Navy has promised to cut its bombardment in half by 1979. The Navy also lets Hawaiians fish and boat near the island on occasional weekends and once allowed a small group ashore for a religious service. But the Navy maintains that Kahoolawe is the only suitable target range within easy reach of its Hawaiian bases. Vice Admiral Samuel Gravely Jr., commander of the Third Pacific Fleet, pointedly notes: "The military in Hawaii is a billion-dollar-a-year business. A significant part of that business is generated because Navy and Marine forces are here to train, and Kahoolawe is a prime training site."