[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 23 (Tuesday, February 12, 2008)]
[House]
[Pages H824-H827]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
KALAUPAPA MEMORIAL ACT OF 2008
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 3332) to provide for the establishment of a memorial within
Kalaupapa National Historical Park located on the island of Molokai, in
the State of Hawaii, to honor and perpetuate the memory of those
individuals who were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from
1866 to 1969, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 3332
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Kalaupapa Memorial Act of
2008''.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF MEMORIAL WITHIN KALAUPAPA NATIONAL
HISTORICAL PARK.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Interior shall authorize
Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa, a non-profit organization consisting
of patient residents at Kalaupapa National Historical Park,
and their family members and friends, to establish a memorial
at a suitable location or locations approved by the Secretary
at Kalawao or Kalaupapa within the boundaries of Kalaupapa
National Historical Park located on the island of Molokai, in
the State of Hawaii, to honor and perpetuate the memory of
those individuals who were forcibly relocated to Kalaupapa
Peninsula from 1866 to 1969.
(b) Design.--
(1) In general.--The memorial authorized by subsection (a)
shall--
(A) display in an appropriate manner the names of the first
5,000 individuals sent to the Kalaupapa Peninsula between
1866 and 1896, most of whom lived at Kalawao; and
(B) display in an appropriate manner the names of the
approximately 3,000 individuals who arrived at Kalaupapa in
the second part of its history, when most of the community
was concentrated on the Kalaupapa side of the peninsula.
(2) Approval.--The location, size, design, and inscriptions
of the memorial authorized
[[Page H825]]
by subsection (a) shall be subject to the approval of the
Secretary of the Interior.
(c) Funding.--Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa, a nonprofit
organization, shall be solely responsible for acceptance of
contributions for and payment of the expenses associated with
the establishment of the memorial.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) and the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Bishop) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arizona.
General Leave
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include
extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Arizona?
There was no objection.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3332 would provide for the
establishment of a memorial within the boundaries of the Kalaupapa
National Historic Park on the island of Molokai, Hawaii. It will serve
as a remembrance of thousands of Hansen's disease patients who were
forcibly separated from family and friends and interned at this site.
Beginning in 1866, when the Hawaii Islands were still an independent
kingdom, and continuing through 1969, residents of the islands who were
infected with Hansen's disease, also known as leprosy, were isolated
from the rest of society at the settlement. In all, 8,000 Hansen's
patients were forcibly relocated to the settlement where they struggled
to create new lives. The majority succumbed to the disease while living
there.
Today, less than 20 percent of the graves and headstones of these
former patients can be found in the peninsula. The remaining 80 percent
are forgotten on the landscape. A nonprofit organization made up of
family and friends of former patients will be responsible for funding
and constructing the memorial which will contain the names of all 8,000
patients who were forced to call this settlement their home.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend our colleague, Congresswoman
Hirono of Hawaii, and her cosponsor, Congressman Abercrombie, also of
Hawaii, for their efforts to ensure that all families of former
residents have a fitting commemoration of their deceased loved ones.
Mr. Speaker, we enthusiastically support H.R. 3332 and urge its
passage today as a tribute to the present and past Hansen's patients.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3332 and
yield myself as much time as I may consume.
The gentleman from Arizona has again adequately explained this
particular bill, and I would urge my colleagues to support this
legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlelady from Hawaii (Ms.
Hirono) for as much time as she may consume.
Ms. HIRONO. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in support of H.R. 3332.
Kalaupapa is a 2\1/4\-mile-wide shelf of land jutting out beneath sea
cliff ranging from 1,600 to 3,000 feet in height on the island of
Molokai. It is an incredibly beautiful and isolated area with a unique
history.
This bill authorizes the establishment of a memorial at Kalaupapa
National Historical Park in the memory of those who were forcibly
relocated there because they suffered from or were suspected of having
Hansen's disease, or leprosy. Once sent to Kalaupapa, most never saw
their homes or their families again.
Kahauliko, Loe, Liilii, Puha, Kini, Lono, Waipio, Kainana, Kaumoana,
Nahuina, Lakapu, and Kepihe. These are the names of the first 12 people
who were exiled to Kalaupapa on January 6, 1886, 142 years ago.
This poster is a copy of the Kingdom of Hawaii's register, now at the
Hawaii State Archives, of those sent to Kalaupapa Peninsula. These
first 12 were all Native Hawaiians, nine men and three women. From that
day forward until 1969, approximately 8,000 people living in the Hawaii
Islands were taken from their families and isolated on Kalaupapa
Peninsula, first in Kalawao, and later in the town of Kalaupapa.
Because of society's fear of leprosy, which we now call Hansen's
disease, food was scarce, and shelter and health care were minimal for
the new arrivals. The mortality rate for exiles in the first 5 years
was 46 percent due to the poor conditions.
``An Act to Prevent the Spread of Leprosy'' was first signed into law
in 1865 by Lot Kamehameha, the King of Hawaii. The act essentially
criminalized the disease. Children, mothers, and fathers were forcibly
separated. Children born to parents at Kalaupapa were taken away from
their mothers and sent to live in orphanages or with other family
members outside of Kalaupapa.
The policy was continued in the Republic of Hawaii after Hawaii was
annexed by the United States and into statehood. Hawaii's isolation
laws for people with Hansen's disease were not repealed until 1969, 10
years after statehood, even though medications to control the disease
have been available since the late 1950s.
Nearly 6,700 of the approximately 8,000 people who have died at
Kalaupapa, more than 75 percent, lie in unmarked or unidentifiable
graves. Their names are known only in the official records, which are
not easily accessible.
A memorial listing the names of those who were exiled to Kalaupapa
and died there is a fitting tribute and is consistent with the purpose
of the park, to preserve and interpret the Kalaupapa settlement for the
education and inspiration of present and future generations.
Many have heard of the sacrifices of Father Damien, who is
represented by one of Hawaii's two statues in this Capitol, as well as
those of Mother Marianne Cope and Brother Dutton, who each gave decades
of their lives to care for the patients at Kalaupapa. Fewer know,
however, of the courage and sacrifices of the exiles who were torn from
their families and all they knew to make a life in this isolated area.
It is important that their lives be remembered.
The Kalaupapa memorial will bring these people back to their rightful
places in their family genealogy and history. Many families have gone
to Kalaupapa to search for the graves of their ancestors; but with only
1,300 marked graves, most are disappointed.
In a letter of support for the memorial, David and Chris Mahelona
explained why they, as Native Hawaiians, feel an urgent need for a
monument that would list the names of everyone sent to Kalaupapa.
I quote: ``The naming process and the giving of a Hawaiian name is an
important and sacred component of traditional Hawaiian culture. It is
said that names carry significant mana, spiritual power, and they are
actually a part of the person, just like an arm or leg. In ancient
Hawaii, a person's name was one of the most precious possessions unique
to that individual, and most times related to an event, an ancestor, or
a personality trait. In every case, the kapuna (elders) are always
consulted. It was the responsibility of the bearer of the name to carry
its weight. Therefore, it is important to remember these people by
their names at their final resting place.''
I would also like to read the testimony that Kuulei Bell, president
of Ka 'Ohana O Kalaupapa, submitted to Congress. Kuulei, who contracted
Hansen's disease at age 6, is now 74. And I recently visited her at
Queens Hospital in Honolulu.
Kuulei testified: ``We need to remember the people who have dedicated
their lives and came to Kalaupapa. Father Damien, who we love so much,
came to take care of all those in Kalaupapa in the 1800s, and he became
one of us, contracted the disease, and so we know how this is.
``And also we know that Mother Marianne gave her aloha and love with
all the nuns to come and take care of the patients. They need to be
remembered.
``These things are so important, and the monument is a big part of
our history and our lives.
{time} 1445
``So please consider what we are asking for is our history and for
our children to know what happened to many
[[Page H826]]
of our patients. How sad it was for my mother, who had to wait for me
to go and she could not even touch me because of the disease. And I
could not even touch my children. These are the things that we should
consider, how important it is. These are the memories. So please
consider these things. I say these things from my heart and I hope that
you hear it.''
Kuulei ended her testimony thus: ``Thank you for listening to this.
Aloha and much aloha; much, much mahalo.''
Ka 'Ohana O Kalaupapa, a nonprofit organization consisting of patient
residents at Kalaupapa National Historical Park and their family
members and friends, was established in 2003 to promote the value and
dignity of the exiles of Kalaupapa and to make certain that the lives
of these individuals are honored and remembered through establishment
of a memorial or memorials within the boundaries of the park at Kalawao
or Kalaupapa.
I want to thank House Natural Resources Committee Chair Nick Rahall
and Parks Subcommittee Chair Raul Grijalva for helping to move this
important bill to the floor, and I also want to thank my cosponsor,
Congressman Neil Abercrombie, for his strong support and assistance.
Most of all, I send my heartfelt aloha and mahalo to all the members
of Ka 'Ohana O Kalaupapa, to all the Kalaupapa patients and their
families, and most especially to Kuulei on this momentous day.
I ask all of my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 3332.
Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I'm once again appreciative of the
remarks by the gentlewoman from Hawaii, and I'm also appreciative that
now I know how to say ``Kalaupapa.'' Her staff was very kind enough to
send over the pronunciation guide, but they didn't put where the accent
marks should go; so I didn't know where the emphasis was on this
particular word.
But with that, I am still very supportive of this particular act.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, at this time let me yield to my good
friend from American Samoa (Mr. Faleomavaega) such time as he may
consume.
(Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend
his remarks.)
Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I fully support the provisions of this
proposed bill. The bill proposes to establish a memorial to honor the
memory of all those people who became victims to the dreaded disease of
leprosy, commonly known as Hansen's disease. I certainly want to
commend my good friend and colleague the gentlewoman from Hawaii (Ms.
Hirono) and our colleague Congressman Abercrombie for their
cosponsorship or sponsorship of this important legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I also want to commend the chairman of our committee,
Chairman Rahall, and our ranking member, Mr. Young, for their support
and their leadership in bringing this legislation to the floor.
In 1987, I was honored to be asked by the Polynesian Voyaging
Society, under the leadership of my good friend and brother Nainoa
Thompson, to serve as a member of the crew of the Hawaiian Polynesian
voyaging canoe known as the Hokule'a on which we were able to sail from
the island of Runayto near the island of Tahiti. We sailed to Hawaii by
means of traditional noninstrument navigation. It took us about 27 days
when we landed on the big island of Hawaii. From the island of Hawaii,
we went to Kalaupapa. It's Kalaupapa, located on the northern part of
the island of Molokai, one of the islands that make up the State of
Hawaii. This legislation brings back one of the most memorable
experiences of my life, Mr. Speaker, my visit to Kalaupapa.
Kalaupapa is not only a national historical park but a place that has
received international attention on account of the circumstances and
events surrounding the history of what then took place under the
sovereign kingdom of Hawaii in the early 1800s. Before the arrival of
the Europeans, there were some 300,000 Native Hawaiians living on these
islands. The warrior chief King Kamehameha with some 20,000 warriors
and some 900 war canoes finally was able to unite these islands under
one rule after some 2,000 years of conflict among the ruling chiefs of
these islands.
What also occurred was the illnesses and the many diseases that
Europeans brought to these islands, and one of these diseases was
leprosy, or Hansen's disease. And the unfortunate situation at the
time, having no knowledge or understanding of how they were going to
cure it, the Native Hawaiians were not immune to this kind of sickness
or illness. So the only way to, in any sense, prevent a health hazard
was to send them to an isolated place where many of these Native
Hawaiians became subjected to this dreaded disease, leprosy.
In the process, we also had probably, in my humble opinion, Mr.
Speaker, one of the great leaders in the world, a Catholic priest
originally from Belgium, named Father Damien. Father Damien, if there
is anything that I could ever say the epitome of what the pure love of
God is, this was one man who voluntarily ministered to these people,
who lived in this colony or this settlement. It was full of lepers, and
he voluntarily subjected himself even to this contagious disease, after
12 years of helping the people who lived there build chapels, build
schools, and even helped bury those who died as a result of this
dreaded disease.
Father Damien, as you know and maybe my colleagues are aware, was
given as one of the two leaders representing the great State of Hawaii
right here in Statuary Hall. And the beautiful story about this
Catholic priest was the fact that he voluntarily gave his life in order
to serve the people who contracted this dreaded disease leprosy on this
beautiful area that is called Kalaupapa.
There was also another gentleman, and it might be as a matter of
knowledge to my good friend from the State of Utah. At that time, it
wasn't just people who were forced to have to live in this isolated
settlement, but it caused so much sorrow and sadness where even those
who were loved ones, your wives, your husbands, your daughters, your
sons, and one of these leaders voluntarily went because his wife
eventually contracted leprosy. His name was Jonathan Napela. He was a
Native Hawaiian leader and was a high priest and a member of the Church
of Latter Day Saints, commonly known today as the Mormon Church. And
because of the love of his wife, he voluntarily went and lived there,
and he also contracted the disease of leprosy. It was known as the
program of kokua.
The interesting thing about Jonathan Napela was that this Native
Hawaiian was able to translate the Book of Mormon from English into the
Native Hawaiian language, along with another Mormon elder from Utah by
the name of George Cannon. Jonathan Napela spent the last years of his
life in this leper settlement because of the love for his wife, Kitty,
who also contracted this.
There was a lot of controversy about the life of Father Damien at the
time. The relationships between the Protestants and the Catholics were
not very positive. In fact, according to the records, a minister of the
Presbyterian Church, Reverend Hyde, castigated and literally criticized
Father Damien for some of the things that he did. And in response there
was another noted leader at that time, an author and a Scotsman from
Scotland, who happens to be Robert Louis Stevenson, who had also
contracted TB, tuberculosis. And trying to help his health, he spent
the last 4 years of his life in my islands, the Samoan Islands. And to
this day, Robert Louis Stevenson's grave is still there. Despite the
wishes and desires of the Scottish people and the government to return
his remains, we said no.
But the point that I wanted to make is that in response to the
criticism that Father Damien got from his fellow ministers or those men
of the cloth, I want to share with my colleagues Robert Louis
Stevenson's response:
``When we have failed, and another has succeeded; when we have stood
by, and another has stepped in; when we sit and grow bulky in our
charming mansions,'' and he's talking about this minister, now, ``and a
plain, uncouth peasant steps into the battle, under the eyes of God,
and succours the afflicted, and consoles the dying, and is himself
afflicted in his turn, and dies upon the field of honour, the battle
cannot be retrieved as your unhappy irritation has suggested. It is a
lost battle, and lost forever.''
[[Page H827]]
My point of this is, Mr. Speaker, this national historical park
Kalaupapa, I wish every Member of Congress would go and visit, just
like my colleague from Hawaii, Congresswoman Hirono. It's one of the
most beautiful areas and sites that anybody would ever want to see
north of the island of Molokai.
I wanted to share this with my colleagues because this Kalaupapa is
not as unknown as some people may think or believe, and I thank the
gentlewoman from Hawaii for having this proposed bill, that we should
build a memorial to the thousands of Native Hawaiians and other races
who had also contracted this dreaded disease and should be recognized
for the sacrifices that they have had to make.
With that, Mr. Speaker, again, I thank my good friend from Arizona
for giving me time to speak.
Mr. ABERCROMBIE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support the passage of
H.R. 3332, the Kalaupapa Memorial Act of 2007. This measure would
authorize Ka Ohana O Kalaupapa to establish a memorial to honor those
who were forcibly relocated to Kalaupapa.
Kalaupapa is a National Historical Park located on a remote peninsula
of northern Molokai. From 1866 through 1969, about 8,000 people
afflicted with Hansen's disease, previously known as leprosy, were
relocated to the area now known as Kalaupapa National Historical Park.
Many of the first settlers faced a harsh and difficult life. But the
patients who were sent to Kalaupapa eventually built a community that
allowed them to endure a life cut off from parents, children, brothers,
sisters and friends. Even after medication was developed to control
Hansen's disease, many patient residents chose to continue living in
Kalaupapa.
The site became a national park in 1980 and is dedicated to
preserving the memories and lessons of the past. Kalaupapa is a living
memorial to a community that once lived in extreme isolation. It now
serves as a place of education, contemplation and quiet beauty.
Unfortunately, many of the residents who finished their life in
Kalaupapa do not have recognizable graves or grave markers. The
memorial established by this bill would serve as a permanent marker and
reminder of all 8,000 residents who lived on Kalaupapa.
A little more than 20 patients remain in Kalaupapa. As time passes,
the number of former residents of Kalaupapa gets smaller, as do the
number of people who remember this part of Hawaii's history. With each
passing, the sense of urgency for erecting a memorial becomes more and
more heightened. We need to pass this bill as soon as possible so that
this memorial becomes a reality before the passing of the next
Kalaupapa resident.
My colleague Representative Mazie Hirono has worked tremendously hard
to bring this bill to the floor today. I commend her efforts and would
also like to express my gratitude to Representative Nick Rahall,
Chairman of the Natural Resources Committee, and Representative Raul
Grijalva, Chairperson of the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests
and Public Lands. We would not be here today were it not for their
support and enthusiasm. I wholeheartedly support this bill, am proud to
be an original cosponsor and ask my colleagues for their support of
H.R. 3332.
Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 3332, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________