Racists Go Home!

Racists Go Home! from Val LiHang Jacobo on Vimeo.

Aint it great to be able to produce a film using a single Olympic 10 megapixel digital camera. That's the spirit of the solidarity movement: Being present and using any means possible to show love and support.

What's significant about this film isn't so much the 18 neo Nazi's who showed up in LA on the weekend of their convention, but the audacity of hate groups to spew their racism in the cloak of the first Amendment.

Since the election of Barack Obama in the White House, there has been a massive explosion of extremist groups all across America; revitalizing anti-government militia groups.

The most dangerous of them all, with supporters such as Sarah Palin and her outlandish and disgusting statements is the Tea-Party movement. Such misguided and misleading propaganda plays on the emotional vulnerabilities of Americans who may truly care about their country. But with the majority of this movement being white Americans, you cant ignore deep seeded racism that fuels their restoration dogma.

The America that the Tea Party wants back is the America pre-Obama. So the Tea-Baggers can say it aint about race all day long, but we'll call a spade a spade and we'll be damned if we let history repeat itself.

We will not go down without a fight! We will stand up for Americans of all color and background. We will stand in solidarity against HATE!

Nazis: Get out of Los Angeles!

Too often, the struggle against racism is presented as an abstract undertaking, a matter of blatant attack rather than a furtive system of discrimination.

But in Miguel Fuentes’ world, on April 17, 2010, racism was as real as the tree lined park that shaded the arrival of the barefaced National Socialist Movement (NSM), the longest running white supremists neo-Nazi group in U.S. history.

As obvious as the swastika that bejeweled the metal shields of the militant force of about 50 or so white supremists was, Miguel remained bewildered by a city permit process which allowed the NSM to not only march and amplify their hate sermons, but also expend hundreds and thousands of tax payer dollars to protect them. Like many other protestors, that didn't make much sense to Miguel.

As Miguel biked around a crowd of hundreds of Los Angeles counter protestors, attempting to catch a glimpse of the neo-Nazis, he stopped to talk to us and give an urgent message to youth of America to wake up to racism and fight back.

“We’re all people, the human race… you know the Nazi scum, they’re ignorant, like, why do you they want to come, come to LA.”

To youth, 18 year old Miguel says, “You gotta educate yourself. Don’t be ignorant. We have to live in harmony… Without harmony there is no peace.”

Over 200 Los Angeles Police Department officers in full riot-gear faced off with Miguel and a crowd of angry protesters armed with the occasional egg and rock and setting off a cheer from the crowd at each release.

There was a smorgasbord of signs that read “No Nazi scum in L.A.” “United Against Racism” and “END RACISM, this is OUR City” and many more that created a human chain of written word and an assembly line of community activists.

The white supremists, oblivious to the mob of protestors while spewing their hate were drowned out by the sea of demonstrators, shouting through blow-horns and to the top of their lungs.

Chant: “Up up up with the people. Down, down, down with the Nazis”
Chant: “The people united, will never be defeated.”

One by one, NSM speakers took to the podium. Poised by unwavering “Sieg Heils” the speakers amplified their racist promotion of anti-immigrant, anti-Semitic and misogynistic epithets

Barring ignorance or perhaps the most misguided and erroneous source of information, one speaker turned on immigrants for stealing jobs and committing crimes.

While free speech continues to be exploited by certain groups to exercise hatred and racism, we believe in Miguel's message to focus our energy on building our political capital.

The NSM was granted a permit by the City of Los Angeles to use the south lawn of city hall for its demonstration. By strengthening and sustaining political capital, the community coalition against the neo-Nazi’s can push for reforming the permit approval process. Sounds like something quite doable in detering the rise of hate groups and as such, reduce the rise of existing hate crimes against our communities.

The Samoan vote in Long Beach.

What's clear and present for the future of Long Beach, CA is bold leadership that is inclusive of the diverse voice of community.

What better opportunity for the community to be heard than on election day, any election day for that matter. Sad is the case for over 4 million residents of Long Beach, who continue to allow less than 10% of its electoral to determine this city's future.

The Samoan engagement

In a study conducted by Long Beach ICO in conjunction with Tafesilafa'i Inc, of Samoans living in Long Beach, only a third of them (95) were registered to vote. Of the registered voters, only 9 of them were frequent voters and 38 infrequent voters. The study found that 51% of the registered voters never bothered to vote and 5% voted absentee ballot in at least one of these elections. This meant that of the 7,200 Samoans living in the city of Long Beach only 0.0013% of Samoans meaningfully participate in the electoral process.

In 2009, Reverand Dr. Misi Tagaloa upon the insistence of a community coalition threw his hat in a special election to replace outgoing long standing council-member Bonnie Lowenthal in the first district. Running on the premise of simply defying the odds stacked against him, Misi boldly went where no other Samoan has gone. His campaign slogan, "Voice of the Voiceless" whom most of the organized labor unions were oblivious to and politics as usual were not ready for. Funded and operated entirely by community volunteers, and PacBiz: The Association of Pacific Islander businesses and Professional pro-bono services; the community launched a landmark campaign.

The 'Go Misi' campaign, had the least name-recognition but outweighed other campaigns by over 500,000 lbs of food. Yielding zero-sum contributions from any organized labor or corporation, Go-Misi banked over 500 trained volunteers and organizations of Samoan, Tongan, Chamorro descent to phone-bank, read district maps, follow scripts, table debates, hold rallies, fundraise, canvass odds/even, stay on target and learn the ropes of running a campaign office.

The Go-Misi camp had its own celebrities. Flying in from American Samoa, was Governor Togiola and from Washington DC, Congressman Faleomavaega Eni Hunkin to one of several community fundraisers, which raised thousands at a time.

While then Senator Obama was campaigning on the streets of Alabama, the Go-Misi camp, were canvassing Long Beach, Compton, Carson and Lynwood putting up Go-Misi lawn signs and talking up Long Beach.

Today, Long Beach is set to elect or reelect it's mayor. Five of nine districts seats are up for grabs, including the city attorney, prosecutor and auditor slots.

The polls are open today from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. for Long Beach voters who have not already cast mail-in ballots in the city's primary election.

Of course in this great city of ours, elections are usually quite predictable. It's never the little-guy, who toils away on a small street corner nourishing the souls of hundreds. It's never the one whose name is known only to those who come three times daily for a warm meal.

Reaffirming that democracy is never a spectator sport, the Go-Misi camp leveraged the battle for a seat to engage in protest and dissent.

As strategic as we were as advisors to the candidate, Misi often argued for the will of the community. To my daily chagrin, his vision wasn't to takeover a council seat, but to take on the war against families: the poverty-stricken, pink-slip looming, children-left behind kind. The one's who continue to hide in the shadows of this self-boasting "International city"

Go Misi was about illuminating the immigrant experience, protecting the integrity of cultural values, expanding the realm of social justice beyond the pulpit and often fighting against our own complacency. Managing a campaign with over 500,000 bosses to answer to was not an easy feat. I would not wish those 8 months on anyone (kidding Misi).

Go Misi, had we won, would have thrived on building a symbolic table large enough for everyone to break bread.

Today, we rest our laurels on Robert Garcia this go around in the city. We trust our friend and comrade will continue to listen to the people of the first district as he has proven this past year.

Polls are still open for us Long Beach. Get out the Vote!

Strumming to the "Fast talking PI"

Sounding the pulse of the new cool and hip comes the so-2010 stirring provocations of Selena Tusitala Marsh. This Samoan college professor turned lyricist debunks the boring history and lecturn-style literature as she ignites us with the awakening of Pacific greats in lyrics as refreshing as ice cold lemonade in a Palm Desert heat-wave.

"The Nafanua, stiloetted, faafafine, girl in the moon circle, no shoe fits the foot of an earth-mama, you and you deported, breaking water, loose knot, wild-dog under my skirt, native daughter... PI" kinda provocation that makes you wanna bust open a fire hydrant and do the cha-cha on the streets of L.A.

In an unprecedented style, Marsh reclaims the voice of Samoan warfare in poetry so captivating through this bold contemporary feminist beat of what feels like an exclusive undercurrent rush in the bluest hightide Pacific coral reef.

Samoana "Market baskets"

Short of sending back your Census form comes another pecker on American households called the Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE). But for the small business owner, the survey is a welcomed exchange.

So agrees Lemusu, owner of the Samoana Market in Long Beach. One of 3 Samoan food stores in the Los Angeles region.

"It'll be helpful for our management team to know spending habits of our customers" says Lemusu.

This month (April, 2010), U.S. Census Bureau field representatives will collect information about how much Americans spend for groceries, clothing, transportation, housing, health care and other items from a sample of households across the country.

The CE program consists of two parts:
The Interview Survey — During the year, about 15,000 households will be interviewed each quarter to obtain data on relatively large expenditures and also those expenditures that occur on a regular basis (such as rent and utilities). The Diary Survey — During the year, another 12,500 households will be asked to keep two consecutive one-week diaries of smaller, more frequent purchases that may be difficult for respondents to recall later (such as a fast-food purchase at a drive-through window, a soda or candy bar from a vending machine, or a carton of eggs from the supermarket).

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics then calculates and publishes integrated data from the two surveys — providing a snapshot of our nation’s economy and spending habits. Government economists use the survey results to update a “market basket” of goods and services for the Consumer Price Index, our nation’s most widely used measure of inflation.

“Findings from the Consumer Expenditure Survey permit policymakers to assess the impact of governmental policy changes on spending patterns of different socioeconomic groups,” said George Grandy Jr., director of the Census Bureau’s Atlanta Regional Office. “These data also help business owners track consumer spending trends, so they can better respond to the needs of their customers.”

Before the CE interviews begin, households will receive a letter from the Census Bureau director informing them of their selection to participate in the survey. Census Bureau field representatives will visit these households to conduct the interview. The field representative conducting the CE interviews must display an official photo identification before proceeding with the interview. Federal law ensures survey respondents’ personal information and answers are kept confidential.

Until the survey results come out, I along with my kalo and palusami finger licking good friends, will be getting our fill at the Samoana market, heck, any market for that matter...as long as it's the 'lololo' good old fashioned Samoan kind.

Now that I'm back on Atkins, I'm putting a call out to all turkey tails and pork sausages.. Yo! You COUNT in my market basket!

Another big one for Samoa: Albert Wendt up for Award

Chatting with Albert
By Tupuola Terry Tavita

Talking to Albert Wendt is like indulging in fine tequila. Heavy on the lime, easy on the salt.

The man is a national treasure.

“Quite frankly, I find politics now quite boring,” he cuts in abruptly as I try to engage him in political yarn.

Afterall, he was a very outspoken political commentator back in the 1970s, while editing and writing for the Samoa Times.

“At my age, the only thing that holds any real importance, is family. I try to come back to Samoa as often as I can.”

So what started off as an interview played out as a Sunday morning conversation with undoubtedly Samoa’s most celebrated poet-novelist. Interviews are demeaning for a person the intelligence and stature of Albert. Not only because he is not a question-and-answer person but that he prefers to engage his, well, companion.

Even calling this unpretentious man ‘professor’ has a pretentious ring to it. I just called him Albert.

So I put down my reporter’s pen and put away my notepad – and set of questions – to engage in a strolling conversation with this scholarly hero of many.

Inevitably, our chat ambled to his latest novel – The Adventures of Vela is a verse novel that reads like an Illiad - that deals with that touchy issue of religion.

“Samoan history starts when the missionaries arrived. There is this hesitancy to speak of our pre-Christian history. Especially our pre-Christian gods and worship. We cannot deny our children the right to know about that history. Young Samoans oversees are thirsting for that historical knowledge.”

To dismiss Albert as a heretic is way too simple. Though he did not say it - and I did not push his personal convictions – he comes across as more of a critic of organised church as an institution. In particular - the cultural paternalism and exclusiveness of the historicism inherent in its teaching.

“We were a godly people before Christianity arrived. We’ve always had priests. The missionaries did not teach us to love. We’ve always had love long before the missionaries arrived.”
So what are you advocating? I asked.

“I’m not advocating anything. And I’m certainly not advocating any mass conversion. I’m simply pointing out that we should not be ashamed nor afraid to talk about our ancient past. And there’s lots of lessons we can learn from the ancient past. Because religion then was not something you can separate. It formed people’s belief systems, how, when and where they travelled, their economic activity, how they interacted as a society and especially, their relationship with the environment.”

Vela has already scooped the Commonwealth Asia-Pacific top award. It is now up for Commonwealth Best Book to be decided by an international panel this week in New Delhi.

FASCINATION
Growing up in Samoa, Albert muses, much of his early fascination with history was incited by his story-teller grandmother Mele.

“I was lucky I was taken under the wing of my 90-year-old grandmother. In front of people she would never indulge in that sort of ancient speak. But once everyone leaves, boy can she spin a yarn. She was happy to impart those stories because she knows I held a particular interest. So are many of our old people. But mind you, every year their numbers are diminishing and we need to carry forward that precious knowledge.”

Albert is not a person who likes to talk about himself.
Instead he’s mastered that Samoan art of deflecting attention, and praise, to others. God or in this case, the Head of State.

He describes his old friend as a man of “great intellectual curiosity”.
“He’s a true scholar of Samoan culture and history and brings a whole new dimension to the Head of State’s office. He knows his literature because he lives it.”
At 72 and ‘retired’, Albert has weathered well.
Bar the shock of grey hair, he looks fit with the twinkle of the well-traveled and the thinking man’s pensive poise.

He’s been away for over thirty years – teaching at the USP Suva, at Auckland University culminating with a stint as chair of at the University of Hawaii.

So is there a chance of taking up a post at the National University? That institution could surely do with someone of Albert’s stature to lift its profile. He respectfully takes a sidestep.

“I live in Ponsonby now with my partner Reina. We write and we paint. That’s where everything is happening…where Samoans are achieving in sports, in politics, in the arts and recently, in business.”

And what is his next offering?

“I’m working with some people in Hollywood. I cannot divulge any more than that as there are contractual agreements being arranged.”

And he’s also finding inspiration away from his work. Rugby and Albert make for an odd couple.
“I’ve been following the success of our Manu Samoa sevens team very closely. It’s good for the country, a good morale boost.”

And as he seems to be taking it easy late in his writing career, another Wendt meanwhile is quickly making a name for herself in Pacific literature circles. Writer Lani Wendt-Young is a niece of Albert’s.

“I’m certainly looking forward to reading her work on the tsunami.”

Ms Wendt-Young is compiling personal accounts of those affected by the September tsunami. Winner of the National University of Samoa short story competition she’s also published in collections out of New Zealand and Australia.


Oceangeles is proud to present the writing of Tupuola Terry Tavita. He is the editor in chief of the 'Savali' the official Government of Samoa publication. Find him on Facebook.

Albert Wendt up for Commonwealth best book award.

Nafanua dead in Vela’s verse
By Tupuola Terry Tavita

What do you get when you run a salami western through the print machine?

A novel that has its moments.

Albert Wendt’s latest offering – the Adventures of Vela- has its moments. A precious few.

In all honesty, I didn’t like it.

It’s too dark and brooding for my taste. Too heavy on obscenities – palagi obscenities that is – the graphically obscene, the perversely sadistic and the profane.

Reading, well flipping through the pages of this verse novel, I was trying to figure out what sort of people would enjoy this sort of writing. Probably frustrated palagis struggling with their inner demons. The sort of people who hand out book awards.
In the back cover, Vela is described as a “Pacific epic…stretching from hundreds of years before the arrival of the Papalagi to the present day and fuses the great indigenous oral traditions of storytelling and Western poetry.”

I don’t know about Pacific epic, but Vela is certainly no Samoan epic. At least not the Samoa that I know of. And I can’t imagine your grandma telling you such stories. Vela more appropriately, is an Albert epic.

When the synopsis for Vela first came out, I was particularly interested in Wendt’s portrayal of the war princess Nafanua - a high point in Samoan ancient history.

My illusions were destroyed.

Wendt’s Nafanua is a seductive, scheming power-hungry wretch seething with penis-envy. From what I know, the ‘Tamaita’i’ (our Lady) only raised war to free the enslaved and only went to war when beseeched by paramount chiefs. She never kept any of the titles she won in battle.
The war at Lea’ea-i-Sisifo – which her chronicler Vela surprisingly fails to mention – best illustrates Nafanua’s quality.

“A pa’ia le pa i Fualaga sua le tuli aua le Alii-o-Aiga,” her mother Tilafaiga told the Lady before she set off for war. When you reach the pa at Fualaga, stop the killing in respect to my brother the Alii-o-Aiga who resides at Faiaai. The reference, not a title, to Sialiitu as the Alii-o-Aiga – which transliterates to ‘Prince of Families’ – is an indication of Sialiitu’s station in Nafanua’s family and the va tapuia between brother and sister.

Sure enough, Nafanua’s clubs were not wielded beyond Fualaga. But those of her companions Matuna and Matuna, with blood on their nostrils, did. So Nafanua turned her clubs on them.
“Ua ola i fale le laau a le Tamaitai.”

That even in the thick of battle, Nafanua stuck to her principles – in this case, respect for family.
I also seriously doubt seductress. Going by her heroics, she probably looked more Alafoti Faosiliva (no pun intended) than the reigning Miss Samoa. We all want our heroines to look like Xena Warrior Princess, but war – the bloody and brutal hand-to-hand face-to-club kind under the scorching sun Samoans engaged in in the distant past - is simply not good for the complexion.

And our Lady fought many wars.

Kidding aside. To be fair, Vela is a novel not a historical account. And I’m probably not the sort of person to comment on it. Though we all respect and appreciate his many achievements, admittedly, I am not a fan of much of Albert’s novels. And what you’re reading is not a book review. I lost interest and didn’t finish reading Vela’s verse. My feeble Christianized mind has developed an aversion - well, an abhorrence - for palagi, and Samoan, gutter language. Especially when used with such abandon. And from my Samoan perspective, I really don’t see the point in trying to intellectualize nor wax lyrical on Vela’s obscenity-laden vent, er, verse. I didn’t enjoy it. If anything, it’s very unSamoan.

Motivation and inspiration we all seek, is painfully lacking in Vela’s tortured soul eccentricity.

HOMER
I, like many, want to be entertained in my reading.

I love Homer’s Iliad. The prose, the heroics, the romance, the gallantry and the valor. Nothing wrong with that. Samoan ancient history, mind you, is peppered with the makings of classic epics. But I guess we’ll just have to wait for that next Samoan writer to write that Samoan epic we all been waiting for.

But back to Vela, I just don’t read to wallow in the mire of miserable characters and equally miserable plots. And all the characters in Vela – both human and non-human – are just plain miserable. Page after page they become predictably one-dimensionally miserable.
I like my poison to be heavy on the assumed and light on the narrative. Why I prefer Chinese cinema over diet Hollywood.

And if Samoan story-telling and oratory is anything to go by – a true novel in the Samoan vernacular is yet to be published – it would be along the same lines.

Rich in metaphor and allegory than the descriptive narrative. The colloquial less-is-more.
Ironically, the thrust of Vela’s verse perhaps best answers Albert’s riddle-in-the-cap (see interview on page 2). Of why so many quickly converted to Christianity when it arrived. Perhaps they were just fed up with wars, of incest, rape, animalism and all manners fetish Wendt so vividly describes.

Or perhaps they realized the futility of bowing down and paying homage to trees , rocks, insects, squiggly fish and the elements.

But most possibly, they’d come to identify more with the unassuming Jewish carpenter who championed the poor and the weak, healed the sick, raised the dead, turned the other cheek to his enemies and died on the cross for Vela and Auvaa’s sins.

Albert is correct in that you don’t have to be a Christian to know and practice love. But you also don’t have to be an edified ‘pagan’ to respect the environment. Those are universal values.
But Tagaloa and Nafanua still live. Not so much in Vela’s verse but in the traditions and culture of Samoa we practice every day. Every time you tip the ava cup, orate on the malae armed with staff and fue or a tufuga takes the au to virgin skin – they live.

Because they weren’t just deities we worshipped. They are part of our gafa, our aiga, our heritage. That part Wendt is spot-on right.

One of those few precious moments in Vela’s verse.

Oceangeles is proud to present the voice of Tupuola Terry Tavita. He is the editor in chief of the 'Savali' the official Government of Samoa publication. Find him on Facebook.

More of the " big f@#*ing" deal.

With approval ratings holding steady at 53% over the last few months, Obama continues to prevail with the people.

Even with a nation divided by his signature domestic accomplishment, the health care law, and Biden's "big f@#*ing deal" at-a-boy; this blog echoes the sentiment and thinks that putting Americans in control of their health care, is a big effing deal.

At Oceangeles, we believe that the fun has just begun. It is a big deal when $1 trillion dollars of federal funds will expand health coverage to 32 million Americans; cut the deficit by $143 billion over the next ten years; provide subsidies for families within 100-400% the Federal Poverty Level, and ensure seniors on Medi Care can afford prescription drugs.

Addressing a cheering crowd chanting "Yes we Can" at Maine on Thursday April 1st, 2010 (no joke here) President Obama in his opening remarks said "...after a century of trying and a year and a half of debate, heath insurance reform, last week, became the law of the land.

Yes we Can, and Yes we Did!

This blog believes that the will of the people will continue to prevail as we confront the realities of health care in America, and dispell the delegitimizing myths and propaganda around the new law. We look forward to following the President's campaign to the people during this massive health care overhaul.

According to the White House, small business with 25 or fewer employees with average annual wages of less than $50,000 will receive tax credits this year if they provide health care coverage to their workers. These credits are said to increase by 2014, with 4 million small businesses benefiting. By the way, there is no employer mandate, another big deal.

So what's in the horizon?

We look forward to participating in the debate for mandates that will expand coverage for the undocumented and a woman's reproductive rights. We see these two issues as the next big deal to watch for.


Photo Credit: CBS/AP