On Saturday, November 19th, HPJ held a community event to celebrate and share its new programs and alliances, staff and new look. The end of 2021 – 2022 have been tumultuous, yet exciting times for Hawaiʻi Peace and Justice. The devastation of the US Navyʻs Red Hill Storage Facility spill in November of 2021, that poisoned 93,000 people re-awakened the de-militarism movement for a new generation, it also meant that this a key moment for HPJ to reconsider the de-militarism for the 21st century. So we went to work on creating a new logo and a new website, sought out new funding and hired new staff. In 2021, HPJ initially hired Rebekah Garrison as the Red Hill organizer, in spring of 2022 brought on Joy Lehuanani Enomoto to oversee all programs and operations, and most recently, this fall HPJ hired Alihilani Katoa as our new Youth Organizer, to lead our youth organizing committee and to develop aloha ʻāina clubs in our high schools with support from the Funders Collaborative on Youth Organizing (FCYO). Patti Choy also joined our board this summer and Christine Ahn stepped up to become our new board vice-chair.
We also joined the Grassroots Global Justice Alliance DemilitaRISE working group. “DemilitaRISE is a working group bringing together GGJ members who are involved in grassroots organizing or people impacted by U.S. militarism, both at home through police and ICE violence, occupied Indigenous lands, racial profiling, mass incarcerations and detention, and globally from war-impacted communities, as well as veterans enduring grave trauma. (GGJ website).” We will be continuing to build out political education programs with Hui Aloha ʻĀīna o Honolulu.
Overall, going into 2023, HPJ is developing new approaches to strategy, organizing and alliance building as we move toward our campaign to stop the renewal of the army leases in 2029.
Mahalo nui loa to everyone who came out to celebrate with us ! We look forward to building with you in the near future.
Want to know more about our Youth Organizing program? Contact us at info@hawaiipeaceandjustice.org or through our instagram @koafutures.
