NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

One issue that every young Chamorro activist has to deal with, is the same issue that so many on Guam struggle with; their relationship to the United States. Guam's relationship to the US in general is ambiguous, it may be considered very American one moment, but then barely American the next. People from their may be the epitome of Americanness one moment, and then foreigners the next. This is not really an issue of active racism, but just a result of the basic relationship between a territory and its colonizer. Such is the nature of all fundamentally unequal power relationships. When one is supposed to be over another, there is a wide gray area where both benevolence and tyranny and be found. If we recall the era of slavery in the US for example, you could treat your slaves like garbage or you could treat them like members of your family. Either way was allowed. There was no rule that said you have to be especially cruel or that you have to torture or maim them, but there was a

I've seen Slavoj Zizek use the example of "the red ink" many times over the years in many books. Interesting to see him now use it to describe what the Occupy movement is attempting to describe.  ************************** Published on Tuesday, April 24, 2012 by The Guardian/UK Occupy Wall Street: What Is To Be Done... Next? How a protest movement without a program can confront a capitalist system that defies reform by Slavoj Žižek What to do in the aftermath of the Occupy Wall Street movement, when the protests that started far away – in the Middle East, Greece, Spain, UK – reached the center, and are now reinforced and rolling out all around the world? In a San Francisco echo of the OWS movement on 16 October 2011, a guy addressed the crowd with an invitation to participate in it as if it were a happening in the hippy style of the 1960s: "They are asking us what is our program

When Geocities disappeared a few years ago it was a depressing time for me. I had several websites that were stored on Geocities and alot of things that I've collected and written over the years just disappeared. Some of them I still have, and have survived the years through various laptops I've had or by being attached to an email I've sent. But I believed the majority of it had ended up in the trash can of nonexistence where so many things of the internet go. A few years back AOL closed down there community pages, and many websites that hadn't been maintained in years, but were nonetheless an important source of information were lost. One of my favorite sites there was the old Nasion Chamoru page. It had so much info there, I found myself for years going back there to look at pictures, read old articles, and see other info about the group and about Chamorros in general. The webmasters tried to start up a new Nasion Chamoru page on blogger, but never really did muc

Mensahi Ginnen i Gehilo' #3 "I Fecha" After the Decolonization Commission being called into session last year, things looked to be moving ahead in terms of an educational campaign and a self-determination plebiscite.After eight years lost due to the previous administration's unwillingess to address the issue of political status, the Calvo Administration appeared committed to "un nuebu na direksion" put este na asunto. After quite a bit of hype and hope things have cooled. In 2011, Governor Calvo went on record supporting 2014 as a good year to hold the self-determination vote. The commission and its subcommittee discussed what would be the best date given a variety of factors. These factors included availability of funds for a stand alone vote, changes in administrations, the need for sufficient time to educate people, and also the fear that if the date is set to far into the future, then it might prevent elected leaders today from working towards it.

History is by its nature a troubling thing. Humans tend to want to look forward, especially when there is a mess behind them they would rather not deal with. When something seems too complicated, it is natural to feel like it would be better to leave it alone, rather than think about it or do something about it. This is especially true if that mess has something to do with you or the way your life has come to exist. One very clear local example of this is the complexities and contradictions involved in Guam’s colonization and the forced introduction of Catholicism to the island. Not many people noticed I’m sure, but a few weeks back we marked the 330 th anniversary of the killing of Pale’ Diego Luis San Vitores by Maga’lahi Mata’pang of Tumon. For those who don’t know who San Vitores is, you should take a Guam History class. For those of you who did and still don’t know, you should have paid attention. San Vitores is arguably the most influential person in Guam’s colonial histor

Estague i che'lu-hu Si Jack yan i lahi-hu Si Akli'e'. Mambisita Si Jack giya Guahan gi i ma'pos na mes. Hu kekekombense gui' na maolekna ha move gui' tatte para este na isla. Gof apmam desde sumaga' Si Jack giya Guahan ya dos biahi ha' ha bisita desde ki ha dingu gui'. Para Guahu gof malago' yu' na u saga' mo'na guini sa' sina manhami yan i dos che'lu-hu. Gof hagas desde na manggaige ham gi i parehu na pidasun tano'.

Today's fina'kuentos or as I like to call them empe' finayi is ideal for those who have kids. When I say kids, I mean more than one child of course since having at least two children creates an entirely different home dynamic than having just one. For example, my two kids, Sumahi and Akli'e' get along most of the time. Sumahi is the captain of the ship, while her younger brother Akli'e' is like the Chamorro Brown Steward. He isn't really the first mate because Sumahi doesn't trust him to take charge if she's taigue. Neither does he man any weapons or hold any real responsibility because Sumahi doesn't trust him to do much of anything. So instead he just sits in the galley of the ship, peeling potatoes and washing pots and pans. Because Akli'e' looks up to Sumahi so much this works out fine for the time being; as he develops more and more of his own personality, I suspect there will be some personality conflicts. One thing that t

Esta tumunok Si Santorum. Hagas tumunok Si Gingrich, lao ti ya-na umadmiti este. Si Paul siempre i humohongge gui' para u kontinuha humahatsa i babao-na, lao gi minagahet esta mapedde' gui' lokkue'. Gi i bandan Republican Si Romney i uttimo tumotohgue. Pues para mo'na esta ki i botasion gi November, este un dos na taotao na inacha'igi. Esta hagas i batkadan Obama pine'lon-niha na Si Romney para u i gayun Republican. Pues siempre esta manlisto siha para i cho'cho' put taimanu na sina ma tachi gui'. Egga' este na video ni' hu na'chetton gi este na post. Kalang dnanche Si Santorum annai ilek-na na Si Romney i mas daffe' na kandidatun Republican ni' sina kumontra Si Obama. I mabuena-na Si Romney na i health care na prugrama na Si Obama ha implemente, ha o'osge i hagas na pine'lon Romney giya Massachussetts annai estaba gubetno gui' guihi. Esta i taotaon Obama siha manlisto para Si Romney, esta ma trut

It is interesting how I am often seen as a very confrontational person by some; how some people see me as an angry aggressive activist who at every moment fights the power and challenges things. I do think of myself as a critical person in some ways. I am very critical of certain structures of power, most importantly Guam's relationship to the United States. I am very critical sometimes of the way power and race operate at the University of Guam, but I am not the type who articulates this at every turn. I do not go around shaming Americans with every chance I get. Even if I have very serious critiques about the presence of the US military on Guam, I do not go around spitting on them. Part of this is simply because of who I am. I am not a confrontational person. I have never really seen the value of it. I have always sought to find more indirect ways of accomplishing things. Perhaps you could call this a cultural thing, as most people tend to articulate Chamorros as being like thi

Wrote this last year for the Marianas Variety, forgot to post it here. I almost get teary eyed thinking about how crazy the Republican contenders for the election were. Sad to be down to just Romney, Satorum and the ghost of Newt Gingrich. ********************************** “Flirting with Disaster” Michael Lujan Bevacqua 5/12/2011 The Marianas Variety Donald Trump isn’t running anymore for the Republican nomination for the Presidency in 2012. It’s a shame really. Technically, he never was really running, but rather participating in what seems to be the current national pastime of leaders in the Republican Party, flirting with the idea of running for President. It is a lucrative game and one which takes clear advantage of the problem that the Republican party lacks a clear leader or vision for their brand in the next election. Trump’s candidacy was ridiculous but had to be taken seriously for a few weeks because the media and opinion polls ended up turning the mere

I did not post much for a few days because I was getting ready to travel to Japan. I got here yesterday to Osaka and I’m preparing to present at a conference on Friday. I’m looking forward to finishing my paper, it is about the Chamorro creation story of Fu’una and Puntan, and the ways in which we can see the shaping of Chamorro culture in line with the many lessons and morals different versions of the origin communicate. It has only been a few months since I was last in Japan, since I attended the 2011 Japan Peace Conference in Okinawa last November. This time being in Osaka, things both feel the same, but also very different. The overwhelming presence of Lawsons and Family Marts comforts me, letting me know that no matter where I go in Japan, there will most likely be at least two convenience stores there where I can buy a decent bento, Pokemon cards or a Pepsi Nex. But at the same time, things are very different. It is difficult for someone like me who is so taitiningo’ about re