NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

This week I, along with a few others will be unveiling a new blog that we have been working on. It is titled " Mumun Linahyan " which is one of the Chamorro words for saying "revolution." Although the title of the blog might make it seem that it will be strictly political, it isn't necessarily. There will be posts about literature, movies, comics and other types of media. Sometimes these posts may have some political dimension, sometimes they may just be instances of nerding out. As much as possible things will have Guam connections to them and as an excited side effect, the blog will feature plenty of things that don't appear to have any Chamorro connection, nonetheless written about in the Chamorro language. I wrote the passage below to talk about the meaning behind the name. http://www.mumunlinahyan.com.  ************** According to The Chamorro Dictionary by Donald Topping, “mumun linahyan” is a way of saying “revolution.” If we break it down

Like anything, colonization is a complicated and contradictory process. But when looked back upon by people who wish it hadn’t happened or happened differently, it can take on an all-consuming and oppressive totality. It was something that humiliated, subjugated and tortured a poor helpless people. The worse that you can make it sound, the more it seems to empower the need to seek redress or justice for what happened. History becomes then a list of bad things that happened and ways that the colonized peoples were victimized and marginalized. There can be obvious truth to this, but it tends to cast colonialism in a light that doesn’t ever really exist. Colonization becomes more unified and consistent than it really is. It moves towards feeling monolithic as its sins become more pronounced. Take for example in Guam’s history, the Chamorro Spanish Wars. From this name alone it creates an image of Chamorro warriors fighting bravely against the Spanish invade

Not many people remember who Guam's version of the Lone Ranger was. He was someone who in a time of terrible crisis and injustice, with great risk to himself, stood up for the Chamorro people. Juan Mala or Juan Malo might be someone you would consider to fit this category. In some of his stories he does wear a mask to hide his identity when he is tricking and defrauding the Spanish on the island. But alas, Juan Mala stories were popular long before the Long Ranger even existed. Agualin could be a wishful candidate. During a time of terrible warfare and atrocities he worked to organize the Chamorro people to fight against Spanish colonization. He did not shy away from a fight but in the speech attributed to him he called on them to rise up, and that he would lead them with his lance that has killed many and will kill them all. Metgot na sinangan. But once again Agualin lived long before the Lone Ranger was created. If you were a drinking man than someone from prewar Guam w

I just to Okinawa a few hours ago, had dinner and meant to quickly fall asleep in my hotel room, but this has not happened yet. I spent much of the trip today thinking over my various talks that I'll be giving while here this weekend. I was trying to map out my strategy for talking about decolonization in Okinawa. In Guam, I already have several ways of introducing and broaching the topic, as the history of the island has given us a couple of esta listo discourses that you can use. For example in Guam today I would say there are three basic ways in which decolonization is discussed. You can break them down as follows: Unincorporated Territory, Non-Self-Governing Territory and Nasion Chamoru. Each of them begins from a different point in Guam's colonization and although they may overlap, they often evolve in opposing directions. Unincorporated Territory: The basis for understanding colonization is the lack of incorporation with the United States. Guam is a possession of th