Centering Indigenous Leadership in Maui鈥檚 Fire Recovery

Aug 16, 2023

More than a hundred people have so far been that swept the Hawaiian island of Maui, making it one of the . Federal agencies are pledging assistance even as survivors are desperately looking for loved ones and struggling to find lodging and other necessities. The historic town of in particular has been completely destroyed, the fires consuming precious alongside lives. Meanwhile, there are already of real estate developers and investors aggressively pursuing purchases of land from survivors.

Kaniela Ing, national director of the , co-founder of , and a former elected official to the Hawai鈥榠 House of Representatives spoke with 猫咪社区! Racial Justice Editor Sonali Kolhatkar on Rising Up With Sonali about the devastation on Maui and the coming recovery efforts. Ing, who is a 7th-generation Native Hawaiian, emphasizes the importance of centering Indigenous voices and leadership in rebuilding an island struggling with the ongoing impacts of tourism and colonization.

The views expressed here and on Rising Up With Sonali do not necessarily reflect the opinion of 猫咪社区! Media.

Sonali Kolhatkar joined 猫咪社区! in summer 2021, building on a long and decorated career in broadcast and print journalism. She is an award-winning multimedia journalist, and host and creator of聽猫咪社区! Presents: Rising Up with Sonali, a nationally syndicated television and radio program airing on Free Speech TV and dozens of independent and community radio stations. She is also Senior Correspondent with the Independent Media Institute鈥檚 Economy for All project where she writes a weekly column. She is the author of聽Rising Up: The Power of Narrative in Pursuing Racial Justice聽(2023) and聽Bleeding Afghanistan: Washington, Warlords, and the Propaganda of Silence聽(2005). Her forthcoming book is called聽Talking About Abolition聽(Seven Stories Press, 2025). Sonali is co-director of the nonprofit group, Afghan Women鈥檚 Mission which she helped to co-found in 2000. She has a Master鈥檚 in Astronomy from the University of Hawai鈥檌, and two undergraduate degrees in Physics and Astronomy from the University of Texas at Austin. Sonali reflects on 鈥淢y Journey From Astrophysicist to Radio Host鈥� in her 2014聽聽of the same name.