Profile of APAH Month activist Dr. Haunani-Kay Trask

For Asian Pacific American Heritage Month this May, a specific Asian American or Pacific Islander activist will be given the spotlight to help familiarize Airport High’s student body with the sociopolitical issues that affect Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and support a positive cultural appreciation of the Asian and Pacific Islander diaspora here in the United States. This week honors Dr. Haunani-Kay Trask, named as one of the 15 most extraordinary Hawaiian women by Hawaii Magazine.

Trask, a notoriously controversial figure, has spent all her life devoted to cause of native Hawaiians and is a remarkable activist, author, poet, and feminist who has served for 10 years as a full-time director at the Center of Hawaiian Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Her activism is particularly focused on the cause of Hawaiian sovereignty and much of her poetry and other written works are focused on topics of racism and feminism through the eyes of a Native Hawaiian woman.

Dr. Haunani-Kay Trask was born in California on October 3, 1949, but grew up in O’ahu with her politically active family, which includes another notable activist and attorney Mililani B. Trask, who is her sister. Trask says that her remarkable oratory skills were cultivated by her father, a lawyer, who had her recite his speeches at the age as young as five. Trask attended the University of Wisconsin (Madison) where she earned her B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in Political Science3. When asked why she chose Wisconsin instead of a college in Hawaii or California where most Hawaiians go to for higher education, she explained that it was to get a different, outside perspective that would free her to think for herself, saying that “you gotta get out of the colony [Hawaii] before you go home and think, ‘this is outrageous!’”. This defiance of the social norms and injustices of today would shape her activism for years to come.

Throughout her years of activism she has opposed American presence on Hawaiian land, including protesting against American military bases and activities and critiquing the Hawaiian tourism industry. She was mostly active in the 1980s and 1990s, and retired from her position at the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 2010. Trask was honored at the I Ulu I Ke Kumu awards ceremony held by the Hawaiʻinuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge and is a beloved member and influential activist in her community, and has influenced other indigenous peoples as well and remains relevant for years to come. Regardless of whether or not one agrees with her viewpoints, one should respect that she has done her research and has genuinely pushed for the causes she believes in.

To learn more about Dr. Haunani-Kay Trask, she has published several books of poetry and nonfiction, such as From a Native Daughter, Light in the Crevice Never Seen, Night is a Sharkskin Drum, and Kue. There are also videos of portions of her speeches and interviews on various video streaming sites.