uh so i never do this but maui is quite literally on fire and there isn't nearly enough care or consideration for. you know. Native Hawaiians who live here being displaced and the land (and cultural relevance) that's being eaten up by the fire. so if ya'll wanna help, here's some links:
If you've ever wondered why people in Hawai'i hate tourists, try to wrap your mind around the fact that there are CURRENTLY, RIGHT NOW, tourists sipping martinis and looking at fish within swimming range of the fresh corpses of local people who couldn't escape the overnight destruction of their entire town.
Try to comprehend that there are fully functional, high capacity boats passing through the waters in front of an area full of survivors who are stranded and in need of supplies, refusing to help. They are hosting snorkeling tours.
Really think about, try your best to actually picture over two thousand people unhoused and in need of shelter, with nothing but the clothes on their backs and nothing to return to. Understand that the island, stolen land, is littered with hotels full of air conditioned of rooms with beds and showers and toilets, each fully equipped to host hundreds of families for weeks, turning these people away because they're booked up with tourists who refuse to leave.
And understand that these tourists were offered free transport to return home or be hosted on other islands. Free. Courtesy of local tax dollars. 4,000 wealthy tourists were offered free flights shelter on Oahu and begged to leave the island, BEFORE the survivors were given shelter.
And enough still insisted on remaining and carrying out their vacations that people are left without shelter and resources while they enjoy "their stay in paradise".
[Edit]: This current situation, and this type of tourist behavior is horrifying beyond words. In other circumstances, the tourism situation is much more complicated, and I need to ask that people do not add on to this post unless they are local.
Support Maui, Hawai'i Residents During the Lahaina Wildfire Crisis
resources for Maui residents & for folks to support them.
A series of wildfires exacerbated by hurricane winds and climate change has destroyed homes, historical sites, and natural flora in Lahaina, Maui. Thousands have been displaced, and lives have been lost.
WWC's mod Ren has put together a page outlining resources for residents displaced and affected by the wildfires, and for those who wish to support them during this crisis.
Please share this resource and consider donating, especially if you are not local to Hawai'i and have visited or are considering visiting the islands.
Find a list of orgs to donate to HERE
Our hearts are with Maui residents during this tremendous loss.
I may be too stressed to articulate this clearly but I am going to try.
While Hawai'i and Maui are trending I'm going to share this link. Its a FAQ about Hawai'i's statehood and the situation Hawai'i is in at the moment. There are people who want to be part of the U.S in Hawai'i and there are people who don't, but the people of Hawai'i were never, at any point, given an option to choose.
If you want to help Hawai'i and it's people but can't donate, spread this word. Help educate people. Make Hawai'i as the tropical paradise be replaced with the sovereign nation stolen by the u.s.
It is subtropical, meaning it is much more vulnerable to arid climates caused by climate change.
It has been systematically stripped of its native food harvesting practices and any ability to farm and self sustain. It has been systematically stripped of its previous industries. Maui used to export milk and cattle. That's all been taken away.
The islands since the 1800s were exploited as plantations, burning sugar cane and growing pineapples which are not native, diverting the water and depleting the water table.
Lahaina burned because of these practices. Because the native people were no longer allowed to govern their lands.
We as local people know that tourism is bad because this systematic destruction has happened in living memory. Within my grandparent's lifetimes, within my lifetime. I have watched this island crumble at the hands of mainland startups, hoping to take people on whale watching tours that cut the whales with their boats while people aren't allowed to have a ferry between islands. People create ziplines and tours through lands that used to belong to local people for farming and cattle. Now they're bought out for photos and hikes the local people can never afford. Hundreds of jobs have been lost in the past thirty years. Mass migrations to the mainland have been made by local people, myself included because we can no longer afford to stay on the island where we were born. Working three jobs is not enough to cover the rent because the houses are bought up by mainland people who then turn these houses into vacation rentals and charge hundreds a night. Right now these very homes are being paid for by the government so that Lahaina people have somewhere to stay and it's costing the state millions that people in the mainland are reeping.
People ask why tourism is bad. Because there are people alive today on Maui that have watched the foreign industries destroy everything. Because people alive today know what used to be and knew how to take care of the ecosystem so that this kind of calamity didn't happen. Lahaina was not just fertile. They had canals and waterways. Rivers that they would drive boats through to go from one part of town to another. It was more like Venice than this desert you see in pictures.
And do your own research. The information is out there. There are two Hawai'i's. The one you see as a tourist, and the REAL one. The one we need to protect.
Let Hawaiians have their land back. Let them restore the water to the land so we can prevent further catastrophe. Tell people about REAL Hawaii.
Frequently Asked Questions about Hawaii and the movement to re-establish independence.
Herman Andaya, who leads Maui’s Emergency Management Agency, defended the decision not to sound warning sirens amid the catastrophic Lahaina
I hate this headline. And people are just going to read this headline and not the article and get angry, and that makes me even more annoyed.
The sirens in question are tsunami sirens. They’re down by the coast (not near where the fire was) and unsurprisingly direct people to higher ground. If locals heard them, that’s where they would go. Imagine if you were in the Midwest, and a wildfire was approaching so they fired up the tornado sirens. You wouldn’t evacuate. You’d go in the basement or the bathroom, because that’s what those sirens mean. Turning them on would send people into a death trap.
It’s the same problem here. The thing with emergency management is that different emergencies require different solutions. You don’t pull a fire alarm for a tornado, you don’t fire up the tornado sirens for a tsunami, and you don’t set off the tsunami sirens for a goddamn wildfire.
Absolutely crushed by the news coming out of Maui right now. Intense brushfires have scorched the island forcing residents to evacuate. There have been several deaths and no power on the West side of the island.
Here are a few local charities that are accepting donations (UPDATED 08/1//2023):
Maui Rapid Response is a citizen-based disaster response team. They are posting lists of needs on their Instagram account. https://www.instagram.com/mauirapidresponse/
The Maui Humane Society is asking to help foster any animals in distress. They are also accepting pet food, litter, kennels, and donations. www.mauihumanesociety.org
Global Giving has partners on the ground helping survivors access food, shelter, and other emergency services. https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/hawaii-wildfire-relief-fund/
World Central Kitchen has teams on Maui offering food and water to evacuees and first responders. https://wck.org/
Maui Strong Fund is currently being used to support communities affected by the wildfires on Maui. https://www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org/maui-strong
New Life Kahaku is a local non-profit is accepting donations for food and supplies. www.newlifekahuku.com
