What Does "Coalition" Mean to You?

[Katy Rose]

I'm just posing the question for now.

I've attached a provocative essay by Bernice Johnson Reagon on this topic...see what you think!

Reagon draws a distinction between "home spaces" where one can be comfortable, and "coalition spaces" where one is challenged and stretched beyond the comfort zone to engage across differences. Here's an excerpt:

"Coalition work is not work done in your home. Coalition work has to be done in the streets. And it is some of the most dangerous work you can do. And you shouldn’t look for comfort. Some people will come to a coalition and they rate the success of the coalition on whether or not they feel good when they get there. They’re not looking for a coalition; they’re looking for a home! They’re looking for a bottle with some milk in it and a nipple, which does not happen in a coalition. You don’t get a lot of food in a coalition. You don’t get fed a lot in a coalition. In a coalition you have to give, and it is different from your home. You can’t stay there all the time. You go to the coalition for a few hours and then you go back and take your bottle wherever it is, and then you go back and coalesce some more."

[Noelani Josselin]

Kathy Rose,
Being a Kanaka, “coalition” to me means, bridging the gap between culture, government and science. It seems that government and scientists (those holding PhD’s) disregard knowledge and traditions of our culture despite the fact that this important knowledge have been accumulated for decades—even centuries—knowledge and traditions that have allowed the Kanaka people to work with nature rather than destroy it, because they are dependent on it and thus have a sense of interdependence.
Indigenous Kanaka's are the inheritors and practitioners of unique cultures and ways of relating to other people and to the environment and have retained social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant society in which we live. Despite this cultural differences, Kanakas and the various groups of indigenous peoples around the world share common problems related to the protection of their rights as distinct peoples.
Kanakas have sought recognition of our identities, ways of life, right to traditional lands, and natural resources; throughout history, rights have been violated. It is known that Indigenous peoples are among the most disadvantaged and vulnerable groups of people in the world today. The international community now recognizes that special measures are required to protect the rights of the world's indigenous peoples.

Bridging the gap to protect and preserve the Kanaka Culture for future generations to enjoy and to keep Kauai, Hawaii unique! Thats what Coalition means to me!
Aloha,
Anake Noelani

http://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/csv/csv-article.cfm?id...

[Anne Punohu]

Well, since I just started a Coalition, the Kauai Fair Housing Coalition, *see Groups*, and join, please!....a coalition is a co-mingling, co-joining, co-operation of like minded individuals joined together to pursue the sucess of a single cause with pinpoint accuracy and relentless pursuit of social justice, equity and humanitarian goals. Likewise, coalitions can be formed for any purpose for which the need arises, and the force of the people can prevail over an unnacceptable situation.
That is what a coalition means to me. Please join mine. Find out more on January 8, 2009, 5-7 pm Kauai Convention Hall.
Aloha, Anne Punohu