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Winter 2001 | Spring 2002 |
 President's Message (Maile Bay)Second Redistricting Plan Approved (Jean Aoki)Judicial Independence Project Report (Jean Aoki, Jaurene Judy & Jackie Parnell)Hawaii Coalition Against Legalized Gambling (HCALG) (Dorothy Bobilin)Annual Fundraiser Nets SupportMembers who Love to TravelMahalo to the VolunteersWelcome New Board MemberFlorida Election Memorabilia on Auction BlockVoters, Candidates Flock to Democracy Net During Election 2001 (Bob Adams)Kauai League (Carol Bain)Trials of Charter Schools in Hawaii (Mary Anne Raywid)James Koshi |
President's MessageWe as citizens of the United States of America face challenging times in the aftermath of September 11th. We have all been touched and still grieve the loss of life that occurred in those despicable acts. In response, our leadership has declared an official war on "terrorism" against an enemy that we have used the face of Bin Laden to represent, leading a military assault against the country of Afghanistan. The leadership of Afghanistan is in the hands of a fundamentalist religious group of Muslims, the Taliban, whose ideals can be painted to conflict with Western perspectives. People have criticized the Taliban for such acts as destroying ancient Buddhist idols and forbidding women to work, go to school, or show their faces. Now that nation dares to protect and harbor Bin Laden. Before shouting down those who voice concern and dissent, as we cast stones or tomahawk missiles, we must remember our own history. We too have had our own fundamentalist days enforced under the guise of law. Here are three examples: Here in Hawaii, in the 1800s, through Protestant complaints, the police arrested and roped Catholics, who continued to pray to "idols" despite it having been a banned activity, marched them from Kahiki-nui, East Maui, to Wailuku. Only after women's suffrage and the passage of a U.S. constitutional amendment in the 1920s, did women have the right to vote in our country. Until well past the Middle Ages, English law held a woman to be the property of her husband; we still feel the repercussions of that law with statistics that show that 50% of women in this country will be battered sometime in their lives. We too must remember that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones or live with the consequences. One person's beliefs at a given time in history are accepted and at a different time in history the same belief may be unacceptable. Many of those who have been critical of the actions of our leadership in response to September 11 have been boycotted, publicly admonished, and fiscally penalized for asserting their right to dissent. We must be ever vigilant in protecting our right to free speech. This right alone keeps democracy alive and well, preventing despots and megalomaniacs from seizing the reins of leadership. Stay ever aware and allow each citizen to speak. By diminishing the freedom of speech, we diminish democracy and the very foundation for our constitution. Beware of those who quash the voices of dissent Maile Bay LWV - HawaiiMaile Bay - PresidentJacqueline Parnell - Vice President Grace Furukawa - Secretary Janet Mason - Treasurer Board
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