Waimea Valley,
Ahupua`a of Waimea,
North Shore, O`ahu
December 9, 2005
Honolulu City Council
Honolulu Hale, Honolulu
Dear Council Chair Donovan Dela Cruz, and Honorable Council Members Todd Apo, Romy Cachola, Charles Djou, Nestor Garcia, Ann Kobayashi, Barbara Marshall, Gary Okino, Rod Tam:
We are the people of Hawai'i, and those who love this land from around the world. We are old and young; new to the islands and ancient; poor and rich; distinguished and anonymous.
Uniting our voices, we wish to express our common gratitude to you, the City Council of Honolulu, for taking a courageous stand on December 7, 2005 to protect Waimea Valley, indivisible and in perpetuity. We are grateful that you listened to us; that you questioned and prodded us; that you asked us to stand up and be counted. We did stand up, and we were counted.
We are thankful that you decided to give democracy a chance, that you support an open and fair court hearing, that you decided to trust the institutions of our American form of government. You voted for transparency, and trust in the people.
Your historic vote was stirring; it was moving for those of us who were there that day to witness the tide turn. On December 7, which is known as a day of infamy and tragedy for Hawai'i 64 years ago, you added a new image: a date of courage, of truth, a day of mana'o.
Those who have no voices -- the spirits of Waimea, the ancestors, the native birds, animals, and plants, the rocks, streams, mountains, and sacred places of Waimea -- they also thank you, through our voice. We invite you to come to Waimea Valley, come and celebrate with us its peace and power.
We will never forget. We hope you are further inspired to continue on this path of openness, of careful and critical listening, of fairness and trust in our democratic institutions, in all your work and service to the community.
Mahalo ....
Stewards of Waimea
Here are pictures of the City Hall rally
