Ever heard of Joseph Nawahi? Traditionally, history has been written by the victors--and that explains why most people in Hawaii have never heard of this Hawaiian Renaissance man. He was on the losing end of a forced change in government, fighting the 1893 overthrow of his Queen, Lili'uokalani, and the end of Hawaii's monarchy. Deemed "treasonous," he died in harsh prison conditions in 1896.
Nawahi is worth knowing about today. The Puna native was an indefatigable learner--learning profession after profession in following his passions. He was a teacher, surveyor, newspaper editor, self-taught lawyer, legislator, cabinet minister, and painter (one of his landscapes was professionally appraised recently at $450,000).
His remarkable story will be told on Thursday (June 25, 2009) at 8:30 pm when PBS Hawaii partners with the University of Hawaii Center for Biographical Research to present a documentary: "Biography Hawai'i: Joseph Nawahi."
We're pleased to present the program twice in a row--first, in the English language, with Hawaiian subtitles; the second time with a Hawaiian narrative, and English-language captions.
The other evening, independent producers Craig Howes and Joy Chong-Stannard held a screening of the film in our studio at PBS Hawaii. (A third producer, writer Victoria Nalani Kneubuhl, was out of town.) It was great to see the great-great-grandson of Nawahi and other descendants gather and take pride that a new generation would learn of Nawahi's achievements.
Nawahi was an influential figure in the days of the struggle over Hawaiian sovereignty. His integrity, skills and connections made him a formidable adversary.
UH scholars Larry Lindsey Kimura, M. Puakea Nogelmeier, Jonathan Osorio, and Noenoe Silva took part in this documentary. Ka'upena Wong narrated in English; Kala'i Ontai narrated in Hawaiian. There are scenes in which Kalena Silva plays Joseph Nawahi.
And kudos to PBS Hawaii's Daryl Harada, who did an exceptional job of editing the hour-long documentary, working with only two and a half photographs of Nawahi.
Mahalo nui loa for this wonderful program! What an inspiration and role model for us all. His life reminds us to persevere.
Posted by: Makana Risser Chai | June 25, 2009 at 10:37 PM