NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

The one the reasons why so many scholars, activists and often times community members feel the need to rethink or rearticulate or reimagine "Liberation Day" is because of a recognition of hope integral it is or has been to our relationship to the US. World War II changed dramatically the relationship between the Chamorus of Guam and the US. It changed it somewhat from the US perspective, but it was dramatically altered from the Chamoru side of the equation. Chamorus who felt a clear distance to their colonizer, even if some were eager to be patriotic, prior to the war, emerged from the war eager to find whatever way possible to express their loyalty, their newfound attachment to America. But as I've written many times before, what Liberation Day does as the basis for Chamoru identity in an American context, is create the Chamoru as a subordinate subject, a minor footnote, that must always be superpatriotic for fear that America will withdraw funds, support, recognition an

Fanohge Coalition Announces Delegate and New Senatorial  Candidate Virtual Forums in August   The Fanohge Coalition, which is comprised of 37 community organizations, was recently formed in the hopes of promoting the issues of CHamoru self-determination and political status change in the 2020 Guam election. It is the hope of the Coalition, that the elected leaders of Guam be knowledgeable about and engage seriously in changing Guam’s political status and pursuing just redress for the CHamoru people. In early August the Fanohge Coalition will be holding two virtual forums, one for those running to be Guam’s non-voting representative to the US Congress and one for the non-incumbent candidates seeking election to  I Liheslaturan Guåhan.  The tentative dates are as follows:               Congressional Delegate Candidate Forum – August 5 th , 10 am.              Non-Incumbent Senatorial Candidate Forum – August 6 th , 10 am.   Both forums will be livestreamed on the Fanohge Coalition’s Face

Independent Guåhan October General Assembly will commemorate the history of Chamoru petitions for self-determination For Immediate Release, October 21, 2019-  Independent Guåhan (IG) invites the public to attend their upcoming General Assembly (GA) to take place on Thursday, October 24 th from 6:00-7:30 pm at the Main Pavilion of the Chamorro Village in Hagåtña. This month’s GA will commemorate the more than a century of petitions by the Chamoru people for improvements in their political status. In this spirit, the group will honor as  Maga’taotao  the late Senator Francisco R. Santos, a long-serving local leader. Within months of the US takeover of Guam in 1898, the Chamoru people were already politely requesting improvements in their political status. Dozens of petitions were sent to the US Congress and the US Navy prior to World War II, some bearing thousands of signatures asking that the US improve the political status of the Chamoru people, whether by granting US citize

2000 was the last time that Guam had a significant and focused conversation around political status. There had been campaigns, big and small, around commonwealth or constitutions. Each time there were discussions, community events and also sometime of plebiscite. 2000 was the last time that there was a big community push around the issue, as that was the year a plebiscite was scheduled and some funds made available for public education. This came after commonwealth had died or stalled in the US Congress, and it was decided to start the process over by having a new plebiscite to help determine the direction of future political status negotiations. This new start to the process never really came. The 2000 plebiscite was delayed several times and never took place. I recently went through more than a year of the Pacific Daily News to get a sense of that time, and came across dozens of letters to the editor and articles dealing with the plebiscite and the three sta

Independent Guåhan will be joining a delegation from Guam that is heading to the UN to testify before the Fourth Committee in the first week of October. We are seeking funds to help cover the costs for this trip. If you are able please donate at our Go Fund Me Page "Funds for Freedom. " ************** Håfa Adai! Every October, the United Nations Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee) meets to discuss the status of the world’s 17 remaining Non-Self Governing Territories, including Guam. This is the one opportunity the people of Guam have every year to directly address the 193 member states of the UN General Assembly. This year, the General Assembly will vote on a resolution that includes powerful and important language about the continued colonization and militarization of Guam and the direct impediments to the CHamoru people’s right to self-determination. Guam's governor has also requested a UN visiting mission to assess the status

TEACH-IN: FILIPINO REVOLUTIONARY HISTORY’S CONNECTION TO GUAM’S SELF-DETERMINATION HAGATÑA, GUAM (July 11, 2017) - As part of their monthly Teach-In Sessions, Independent Guåhan will be holding a session introducing Filipino Revolutionary History and how Filipino struggles for independence are connected to CHamoru self-determination. The Teach-In will feature Josephine Ong, Kristin Oberiano, Jamela Santos and Ruzelle Almonds. “As Filipinos living on Guam, we need to acknowledge that the fight for CHamoru self-determination is a fight for the ideals of self-governance, sovereignty, and freedom - the same principles that led to the establishment of the Philippines, the USA, and other independent countries around the world,” says Oberiano, whose grandfather came to Guam during the Camp Roxas Era. All four presenters are Filipinos who consider Guam their home and are passionate about the conversation on the island’s political status. Through the teach-i

I am currently in St. Vincent and the Grenadines for the United Nations Committee of 24 Regional Seminar. I was invited to intend to speak as an expert on the situation in Guam and the Chamorro people's ongoing quest for self-determination and decolonization. This is my fourth time to be invited to speak at the UN C24 Regional Seminar, as I attended once in Ecuador in 2013 and then twice in Nicaragua in 2015 and 2016. I have never been to this part of the world before, meaning the Caribbean, and so I am excited not only to represent Guam, but also to learn more about the struggles for independence and decolonization that have ta ken place on these many islands. I'll be writing about the happenings of the regional seminar and my experiences under the theme of "Decolonization in the Caribbean." Watch this space over the next few weeks to read my posts.

Respect the Chamoru People Rally April 7 For Immediate Release, March 29, 2017 —  A series of disrespectful acts against the Chamoru people seemed to eclipse what is normally one of the most festive times of the year — Mes Chamoru , a month dedicated to celebrating the Chamoru culture.   Almost daily this month, Guam’s news outlets have reported on military and other encroachment into sacred lands and natural habitats from northern to southern Guam; a court decision against the Chamoru right to self-determination; and Federal threats to the Chamor u Land Trust . For many Chamorus, these actions have sparked the need to remind the community that Guam is i Tano ’ i Man Chamoru, the homeland of the Chamoru people.  The language, culture and heritage of the Native people of Guam and the Marianas are what make our archipelago unique in the world.  There is no other place on earth for Chamorus to call their homeland. Above all, the Chamoru people, like all

Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood recently ruled in favor of Dave Davis in his lawsuit alleging that his constitutional right to vote is being violated by him not being able to register for Guam's decolonization plebiscite. The past few weeks have been difficult with plenty of debate and discussion about what to do next and how something like this could have happened. How a country supposed based on ideas of freedom and liberty could care so little about such ideas when it comes to the very people it has colonized for more than a century? A decolonization plebiscite is not the same as voting for senators, mayors or presidents. It is a vote that comes once in a lifetime and is about righting a historical wrong. In a decolonization plebiscite those who have long been denied basic human rights in their own lands, are given the chance to express their preference for what future political status they want to pursue. Most plebiscites feature three basic options