John: WELCOME BACK TO
MICRONESIAN WEEK HERE ON
LIVING808.
IS EVERYTHING.
THERE IS A SAYING.
I CAN ALWAYS FIND ANOTHER JOB,
BUT I CANNOT FIND ANOTHER
FAMILY.
WELCOME BACK TO LIVING808.
Mikey: THAT'S RIGHT.
MICRONESIANS IN HAWAII.
WITH THE LOOK AT HOW LIFE HERE
HAS IMPACTED FAMILY LIFE AND
THEIR CULTURE.
LIFE ON ISOLATED ISLAND IN
MICRONESIAN OFTEN MEANS BEING
REACHABLE ONLY BY BOAT.
THERE IS NO POLICE AND NO
SOCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE.
UNDER THESE CONDITIONS, THE
FAMILY UNIT BECOMES THE BASIS
FOR SURVIVAL, CELEBRATION AND
SOCIAL IS IT STATUS.
John: TYPICAL HOUSEHOLD
COMPRISED OF RELATED
INDIVIDUALS.
FAMILY LIFE IS
MULTIGENERATIONAL.
CONSISTENTING IMMEDIATE FAMILY
AND EXTENDED RELATIVES.
INCLUDING GRANDPARENTS,
SIBLINGS AND THEIR SPOUSES.
AND CHILDREN.
IT ALSO IS COMMON FOR CHILDREN
TO BE ADOPTED BY RELATIVES.
Mikey: SOMETIMES,
NONRELATED INDIVIDUALS BECOME
ATTACHED TO FAMILY ALSO AN
THERE IS SIMILAR TO THE
TRADITIONAL HAWAIIAN PRACTICE
OF HANAI.
IN ADDITION TO FAMILY, MANY
MICRONESIANS FORM STRONG TIES
WITH THEIR VILLAGE NEIGHBORS
OR PEOPLE FROM NEARBY ISLANDS.
OFTEN MAINTAINING CONTACT EVEN
AFTER MOVING TO HAWAII.
INTO THESE VENTILATION
RELATIONSHIPS WITH HELPING
MICRONESIANS ORGANIZE
THEMSELVES AS THEY BUILD NEW
LIVES AND NEW COMMUNITIES
RIGHT HERE IN HAWAII.
OVER 30 YEARS HAVE PASSED
SINCE THE FIRST MAJOR WAVE OF
MICRONESIAN IMMIGRATION TO
HAWAII.
DURING THAT TIME, THE STRONG
SENSE OF CONTINUITY AND
COMMITMENTAVE HELPED
FAMILIES STAY INTACT DESPITE
FACING MANY CHALLENGES.
Mikey: CHILDREN OF THOSE
FIRST IMMIGRANTS NOW REPRESENT
A NEW GENERATION OF
MICRONESIANS.
MOST WERE BORN HERE IN HAWAII.
WENT TO SCHOOL HERE AND ARE
NOW PREPARING TO ENTER A DOLT A ADULT
YESTERDAY.
YOUTH SUMMIT PROVIDES
OPPORTUNITY FOR THEM TO MEET
AND SHARE IDEAS ABOUT HERITAGE
AND THEIR CULTURE.
John: WE'RE FINDING OUT
TODAY MORE ABOUT MICRONESIANS
YOUTH AND IN PARTICULAR, THE
YOUTH SUMMIT.
JOINING ME IS FORMER SUMMIT
ATTENDEE, AND NOW ORGANIZER,
K-NARD NARRUHN.
THANK YOU FOR BEING WITH ME.
I APPRECIATE IT.
CAN YOU TELL OUR VIEWERS WHAT
THE MICRONESIAN YOUTH SUMMIT
IS AND HOW DID IT COME INTO
EXISTENCE?
DEAR MOM AND DAD.
I WANT TO SAY THE YOUTH SUMMIT
BEGAN AS OCCASIONAL FIELD
TRIPS TO U.H. MANOA WITH
FRIENDS AND RELATIVES.
OTHER MICRONESIANS IN OUR
SMALL COMMUNITY AT THE TIME
ARE COMMUNITY LEADERS WITH
ORGANIZE TRIPS TO EXPOSE US,
TO HIGHER EDUCATION.
TRIPS COINCIDE OVER THE YEARS, -- GREW IN SIZE,
EVENTUALLIER GOT SCHOOL BUSSES
TO BRING THE KIDS THERE.
THOSE WERE THE SEEDS PLANT THE
BACK IN THE DAY.
EVENTUALLY, ORGANIZERS BIG
AS MICRONESIAN YOUTH SUMMIT.
John: WHAT EXACTLY GOES
ON?
WHAT HAPPENS AT THE YOUTH
SUMMIT?
WHAT KINDS OF EVENTS TAKE
PLACE?
WE USUALLY OPEN UP THE
EVENT WITH A PRAYER AND OLI.
USUALLY CO DORIANDONE BY A KUPUNA.
PROGRAM CHANGES OVER THE
YEARS.
USUALLY AFTER OPENING REMARKS,
STUDENTS ARE GREETED WITH
TESTIMONIES FROM VARIOUS GUEST
SPEAKERS RANGING FROM
LEGISLATORS, COMMUNITY
LEADERS, GRADUATES AND THOSE
SUCCESSFUL WITHIN THE
COMMUNITY.
STUDENTS ARE THEN SPLIT INTO
GROUPS TO ATTEND VARIOUS
WORKSHOPS.
RANGING FROM CLIMATE CHANGE TO
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT, ADVOCACY,
AND AFTER THE WORKSHOPS,
STUDENTS GET LUNCH AND EXPLORE
THE RESOURCES THERE WITH THE
MANY GROUPS AND DIFFERENT
COLLEGES, MANY MAJORS TO
EXPLORE.
RESOURCES LIKE FINANCIAL AID,
SCHOLARSHIPS TO APPLY FOR,
MILITARY, SO ON. ♪
♪
John: WHAT ARE THE YOUTH
LEARNING AT THE SUMMIT?
I KNOW YOU MENTIONED
WORKSHOPS.
AND SEMINARS.
WHAT ARE SO. THINGS THAT
MICRONESIAN KIDS, THEY'RE NOT
STRANGERS TO ISSUE SURROUNDING
US AND NEGATIVE ATTENTION, FEW
BAD APPLES, BUT COMMUNITY, FOR
THE WHOLE COMMUNITY, SO
THEY'RE TAUGHT ABOUT THEIR
CIVIC RESPONSIBILITY.
THEY ARE RIGHT TO VOTE.
PARTICIPATING CENSUS.
HOW IMPORTANT EDUCATION IS AND
EDUCATION ALONE WILL BRING
OTHER ISSUES RELATING TO
CLIMATE CHANGE, BACK IN OUR
ISLANDS AND BEING MINDFUL OF
WASTE, AND BEING CONSCIOUSLY
GREEN.
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY CRISIS,
AND HOMELESS CRISIS, THAT
AFFECTS OUR COMMUNITY.
MANY SMALL MICRONESIAN OWNED
BUSINESSES ON THE RISE.
INSPIRING THEM TO ONE DAY
PURSUE THAT AVENUE AS WELL.
HUGE SPECTRUM.
THAT'S WHAT THE YOUTH SUMMIT
IS DESIGNED DO, CREATE THIS
SPICESPACEFOR MICRONESIAN AND FELLOW
ISLAND YOUTH TO HE NAVIGATE
STRENGTHS AND PASSIONS.
John: YOU HAVE A UNIQUE
PERSPECTIVE AS A FORMER
ATTENDEE AND NOW ORGANIZER.
HOW DO YOU THINK THAT THE
SUMMIT HELPS YOU PERSONALLY?
SO I WAS GOING BACK TO THE
EARLY YEARS.
HOWEVER, I STEERED OFF TRACK.
EVENTUALLY, DIDN'T COMPLETE
HIGH SCHOOL.
INSPIRED FROM THE YOUTH
SUMMIT, EVENTS LIKE THIS, ROLE
MODELS LIKE THE LAY JOE, JOSIE
HOWARD, TEAM AT WOW, OTHER
SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE IN OUR
COMMUNITY, COME FROM NOTHING,
PAVE AWAY FOR THE YOUTH.
PROVIDED ME WITH STRONG DESIRE
TO DO WELL FOR MYSELF.
SO THAT I COULD DO WELL FOR MY
COMMUNITY.
John: WHAT WERE HAD YOUR
OPINION, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE
DIFFERENCES FROM THE PREVIOUS
GENERATION AND MAYBE SOME OF
THE MAJOR INFLUENCES ON THIS
SOME DIFFERENCES WOULD BE A
LOT OF THE OLDER GENERATION
WERE RAISED BACK HOME.
LAND.
THINGS LIKE THAT COMING OVER
HERE, THERE'S THAT WHOLE
LANGUAGE BARRIER.
AND WHAT I FEEL IS THIS
GENERATION, MIG MY GENERATION, WE
HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OVER THEM
BECAUSE WE'RE RAISED OVER
HERE.
WE STILL PRACTICE OUR CULTURAL
VALUES.
ROOTED.
BUT ALSO KNOWLEDGEABLE IN THE
CULTURE OVER HERE.
AND WESTERN SOCIETY.
John: AS A COMMUNITY
ORGANIZER, WHAT ARE SOME OF
YOUR HOPES FOR MICRONESIANS OF
HAWAII?
I HOPE THE MICRONESIANS OUT
THERE CAN TAKE PART IN VOTING,
CENSUS.
♪
John: OF COURSE, SUMMIT,
YOU CAN CHECK THEM OUT ONLINE.
ALL THE INFORMATION ON WITH
YOUR BON OURWEBSITE, KHON2.COM.
THERE ARE PEOPLE OUT THERE IN
THE COMMUNITY THAT ARE TRYING
TO HELP THEIR OWN GROUPS AND
COMMUNITIES IN THE SMALLER
COMMUNITIES IN THE BIGGER
COMMUNITIES.
IT'S GREAT.
I THINK I LOVE THE FACT THAT
PEOPLE ARE HELPING OUT.
Mikey: I AGREE.
TOO.
I LOVE THAT.
John: OUR SPECIAL SERIES
ON MICRONESIANS IN HAWAII IS
MADE POSSIBLE THANKS TO THE
SUPPORT FROM THE U.S. CENSUS
2020.
Mikey: THAT'S RIGHT.
THEY WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT
EVERY PERSON IN HAWAII IS
COUNTED SO THAT COMMUNITIES
RECEIVE RESOURCES THEY NEED TO
BUILD A BETTER FUTURE.
John: THE GOAL OF THE 2020
CENSUS COMPLETE AND ACCURATE
COUNTS EVERYONE LIVING THE
UNITED STATES AND FIVE TEAR
TOIRS.
Mikey: -- TERRITORIES.
Mikey: PROVIDES CRITICAL
DATA THAT LAWMAKERS BUSINESS
OWNERS, TEACHERS AND MANY
OTHERS USE TO PROVIDE DAILY
SURVEYS, PRODUCT AND SUPPORT
FOR COMMUNITY.
DAILY SERVICES.
John: DETERMINE HOW
HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS OF
DOLLARS IN FEDERAL FUNDING ARE
ALLOCATED TO MORE THAN 100 100
PROGRAMS INCLUDING MEDICAID,
HEAD START, COMMUNITY MENTAL
Mikey: MOST IMPORTANTLY,
2020 CENSUS WILL PROVIDE A
SNAPSHOT OF OUR STATE AND OUR
NATION WOULD WE ARE, WHERE WE
LIVE AND SO MUCH MORE.
IT'S IMPORTANT THAT YOU
PARTICIPATE SO BE SURE TO FILL
OUT THE SURVEY FORM YOU
RECEIVED IN THE MAIL.
John: AND YOU CAN SUBMIT
IT YOUR ANSWERS BY PHONE.
MAIL OR ONLINE.
AT 2020 CENSUS.GOV.
CENSUS WEBSITE SAFE SECURE AND
EASY TO USE WAY TO DO YOUR