NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

The first monthly General Assembly meeting of the Independence for Guam Task Force will take place this week, Thursday, August 25th from 6 – 7:30 pm at the Main Pavilion in the Chamorro Village in Hagåtña. The public is welcome to attend, merienda will be provided as well as presentations, educational materials and a chance to join the Independence for Guam Task Force in its ongoing educational campaign. A General Assembly meeting of this type will be held each month. This first gathering is in honor of Ed Benavente, a Chamorro language teacher, a former Maga’låhi of Nasion Chamoru, and a fervent supporter of independence for Guam, who passed away last month.

Last year I was confirmed as the new Chairperson for the Independence Task Force for the Commission on Decolonization for Guam. The Decolonization Commission is tasked with guiding the process by which Chamorros will exercise their right to self-determination and select the next future status for the island. As part of the Commission there are three task forces, one for each of the three potential options: independence, statehood and free association. There is pretty much taya' support nowadays for these task forces, but I'm trying to do my best to get things started without any budget. A temporary website will be up soon that myself and my girlfriend are working on. A meeting will hopefully be taking place before the end of the month of Task Force members to start work on creating a position paper on why independence is the best option for Guam. I'm also creating a listserv for events and news related to decolonization and independence. I have also decided to start a i