#queen lili'uokalani

[campomni]

(ID in alt text)

One of the things we really try and emphasize at Camp Omni is human rights and freedom of thought, and in order to do that, you have to know the history of those who went before you. To kick off our blog, we're going to be discussing Queen Lili'uokalani, who fought tirelessly for the rights of her people to be restored.

Learn more about Camp Omni here!

[bomberqueen17]

I genuinely thought this was going to be about Queen Liliʻuokalani's quilt, which while it doesn't have this awesome ending, is a true and genuine and factual historical object/event.

After the occupation, the princess was confined to the palace.

Once a month she'd be taken on a walk around the city, heavily guarded of course, to show the people that she still lived. It also served, of course, as a reminder of what they stood to lose if they made trouble. The princess did her best go wave and smile and give the people what encouragement she could.

The rest of the time, her life was spent in musty rooms and dusty towers. She filled most of her time scouring the castle for materials which she would sew into more and more elaborate outfits, which she would show off on the days when she was allowed outside.

Indeed, the public loved their princess and her dresses so much they'd often sketch or paint them along the route and pass the images on so that all could see the princess at least was well.

This pleased the occupiers for two reasons. First: it kept the princess out of trouble. Second: it gave them a reason to sneer and they did love a good sneer.

"What a vain creature she is!" They would remark.

"Doesn't even care we murdered her brothers so long as she gets enough satin to make her little dresses!" They squawked.

This was unfair, of course, for to call her creations "little dresses" was to call Queen Murderfun the Needlessly Genocidal "a tad piquey". Her dresses were gravity-defying wonders lace and pearl. They were thunderstorms captured in velvet and waterfalls summoned in silk. She was a wizard with silk.

Still, she bore their mockery with a tight smile and careful deference.

"Please, good sirs, my home, my people and my city now belong to you. Let me keep, at least, this one last joy."

And they sneered and they crowed most unpleasantly, but they let her keep her sewing room.

Of course, they would have known their mockery to be doubly unfair had they realised the true purpose of the princess's elaborate designs. For hidden in the intricate embroiderings across her gowns, jackets and fans, the princess had encoded secret (and very detailed) messages. When she would go on her monthly walk, the city's loyalists would line the route, sketching down the patterns to decode later.

Thus did the princess transmit all the occupiers' secrets (unearthed while supposedly 'searching the castle for old fabrics') to the city and thus did she build her resistance.

On the day the revolution finally came, she girded herself in armour of thick spider silk and whale bone. She cut a fine figure with a lacy handkerchief in her top pocket and a razor sharp knitting needle keeping her hair up.

As she waltzed through the castle to open the door for her army, the Usurper King tried to stop her and she simply unfolded her handkerchief and showed it to him.

Upon seeing the impossible arcane pattern emblazoned across it, he fell to the floor with blood streaming from his eyes.

She always had been a wizard with silk.

[ladylaviniya]

In the topic of colonisation sucking, I still to this day have beef with how Hawaii's monarchy was demolished. I STILL NEED MOMENTS TO MYSELF SITTING IN SILENCE. Queen Lili'uokalani did not abdicate. She was threatened and forced off her throne and the monarchy of Hawaii was turn into the sole power of the United States.

Why? Oh maybe because after years of discrimination, mistreatment of her beloved subjects by the white power of The US and UK She decided she wanted to rewrite her constitution that would give her power back to her and her people and the rights to vote.

I hate the false narratives of Hawaiians being depicted as savages. Are you fucking fr? They were cleaner and more progressive than European descent colonisers.

Idk who would be able to but I kinda dream that 2025 bingo is gonna be Hawaiians somehow getting their lands back and power and restoring their long lost monarchy. There's something peaceful thinking about it. Fuck Oprah and The Rock who own stolen land of half the fucking islands.

Anyway. Do you ever cry because you know you'll never meet an iconic historical figure? Queen Lili'uokalani is one of them for me. May her majesty rest in peace and paradise among the spirits of her people in Pō and even though she was baptised a Christian, I hope while in Pō she bare witness to the love of Jesus Christ should that have been her inner love and pure desire.

I just want to hug her and get on my knees and cry. She reminds me so much of someone I knew.

[pokadandelion]

Queen Lili'uokalani of Hawaii

[that-one-queer-poc]

i hate you yt people i hate you yt people i hate you yt people

[i-am-so-normal-about-wildlife]

You know, pokemon legends: alola would be fucking amazing.

Like, you're one of the last remaining pokemon trainers of the native alolan people. Ultra beasts have been ravaging your lands since time immemorial, but recently it's gone too far. You've been tasked with asking the closest group, proto-unova, for assistance with this oncoming threat. Whilst their supplies are vast and their soldiers are powerful, their goals are to take alola for themselves. With every naganadel defeated, the natives are pushed further into the margins as the unovans claim the land for themselves.

But there is hope. As you battle a celesteela with ghetsis's ancestor, you notice a small pokemon attempting to help. This is cosmog, and it may be the last hope alola has. Not in your lifetime, but perhaps your descendants will find your pokemon. Your Cosmog could even evolve into a third legendary, based on planets and the concept of "mother earth". Fuck it, have a final boss where you fight ghetsis's ancestor ans the original dragon, versus you and your solgaleo/lunala/planet legendary.

Please, just research America's involvement with hawai'i. Or hawai'i. Or the bayonet treaty. Or just Oceania as a whole. Or lili'uokalani.

Please

[countriesgame]

Please reblog for a bigger sample size!

If you have any fun fact about Hawai'i, please tell us and I'll reblog it!

Be respectful in your comments. You can criticize a government without offending its people.

[tequeguava]

do u have any favourite hawaiian songs/musical artists? :D i'd love to have some more music to explore, but i don't know where to find

I don't actually listen to much non-English music, so I don't have many Hawaiian songs to recommend, but I feel like one of the most popular and widely known Hawaiian songs would be Queen Lili'uokalani's Aloha 'Oe. Here's a downloadable album of some of the pieces she wrote along with a short article about her music. The recording I linked for Aloha 'Oe includes Bruddah Iz, arguably the most famous modern Hawaiian musician!

One song I like that's not necessarily completely traditional, but is almost entirely derived from the traditional chant "Mele Inoa no Kalakaua" (Name Song for Kalakaua), is "He Mele No Lilo" from the Lilo & Stitch movie. Both of these are interpretations of traditional lyrics by Mark Keali'i Ho'omalu, so I definitely recommend checking some of his music out if you're interested in Hawaiian-language music!

[mourningmaybells]

Queen Lili'uokalani's autobiography is available online btw

[magratpudifoot]

Finished 16 January 2024:

Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen - Lili'uokalani

What a spectacularly enraging read this was! Not that I didn't know the broad strokes of what happened to the kingdom of Hawai'i, but reading a firsthand account was something else entirely.

I expected more of a national history than a memoir, and weirdly found myself thinking of Stoker's Remembrances of Henry Irving on more than one occasion. I also was somewhat surprised that Lili'uokalani spoke mostly of royalty and politicians and missionary families when I was given the impression as a child that she was more Of the People than it seemed here. But I am certainly not standing in judgement as someone from a vastly different social context.

"As they deal with me and my people, kindly, generously, and justly, so may the Great Ruler of all nations deal with the grand and glorious nation of the United States of America." ("For Brutus is an honorable man...")

Anyway, yeah, don't buy Dole.

[skiplo-wave]

The situation in Hawai'i is serious. I live in O'ahu now and I am safe for the time being.

The day that the fires swallowed Maui and Lahaina, the children was sent home from school abruptly while the adults was not called off work. They gave no warning and time. It was negligence because a lot of children was just dropped off at their homes with NO ONE THERE. It was clear they knew something was going to happen. The water was shut off. They put blockades so that nobody could drive their cars out of Maui and Lahaina too. Some survivors compared it to feeling like they was on the Titanic. The media is downplaying everything. The government took away outside help and donations. Do NOT trust FEMA or the Red Cross. Please go to YT and TikTok so you can hear the stories of what is really going on.

Our damn governor is declaring Maui is still open. THERE IS NOTHING LEFT! WTF? The entitled tourist are having meltdowns because their vacations was ruined. It's like they don't see or care what's going on while they are swimming in the same water where bodies was just floating. There was whispers going around that Maui and Lahaina was purposely destroyed, and they are going to turn it into some kind of military base. What keeps going through everyone's heads right now is this year marks 130 years since the last sovereign of the Hawai'i kingdom - Queen Lili'uokalani - was overthrown. If you don't know the story, I highly recommend you watch a doc about it. I don't think there is such things as coincidences anymore.

Jfc

[resourcesofcolor]

the link on the "books by pacific islanders" post you reblogged is broken :(

nooo that's such a bummer, it had such a great list that didn't just include polynesian authors, but also from all of pasifika/oceana! :(

i'll add some book reccs myself based on the original post! :)

Iep Jaltok: Poems from a Marshallese Daughter by Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner  

As a poet and performer, Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner uses art and activism as a means to enlighten her readers and followers about her home, the Marshall Islands. In 2012, she co-founded Jo-Jikum, a nonprofit organization committed to helping the next generation of Marshallese to preserve their islands in the face of rising sea levels. Her book, Iep Jaltok: Poems from a Marshallese Daughter, pulls from personal and familial stories to create an illuminating collection of poetry about Marshallese politics, heritage, and climate change.

THE BONE PEOPLE by Keri Hulmes is part Maori, part European, asexual and aromantic and she's outcasted from her family. This Booker Award-winning novel digs into tragic romance, mystery and heritage.

ISLAND OF SHATTERED DREAMS by Chantal Spitz; critiques the French government leading to the time French Polynesia had to undergo its first nuclear tests, making it a controversial piece during its publication. Also included in the storyline is a family saga and a doomed love story.

YEAR OF THE REAPER by Makiia Lucier (Micronesia, Guam). Makiia Lucier grew up on the Pacific island of Guam and has degrees in journalism and library science from the University of Oregon and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

The Properties of Perpetual Light is an homage to the work of the activist-writer, which author Julian Aguon describes as ''the work of bearing witness, wrestling with the questions of one's day, telling children the truth.'' With prose and poetry both bracing and quiet, Aguon weaves together stories from his childhood in the villages of Guam with searing political commentary.

My Urohs: the first collection of poetry by a Pohnpeian poet, Emelihter Kihleng's My Urohs is described by distinguished Samoan writer and artist Albert Wendt as "refreshingly innovative and compelling, a new way of seeing ourselves in our islands, an important and influential addition to our [Pacific] literature."

[ourpacificadventures]

After our amazing morning of snorkelling, we visited the Honolulu city library - it was a beautiful building and so well organised!

We then crossed the road for our tour of Iolani Palace - this was where the Hawaiian Royal family once lived during the time that Hawaii was a kingdom.

The inside of the palace was very ornately decorated, and reminded us of a British stately home in a lot of ways - the King Kamehameha who built the palace had strong relationships with European and global leaders.

Some of the dresses belonging to the last Queen of Hawaii, Lili'uokalani, who was imprisoned for 9 months in the palace after her family were removed from power.

The tour gave us a strong idea of the fondness a lot of Hawaiians still have for the Royal family and the lasting anger and emotion around the loss of the Hawaiian kingdom and its incorporation as a US state.

[read-alert]

November TBR!!! 📚📖🍁

The Tale of the Body Theif by Anne Rice

The Red Deal: Indigenous Action to Save Our Earth by The Red Nation

Indigenous Writes: A Guide to First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Issues in Canada by Chelsea Vowel

Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen by Lili'uokalani

I've Been Here All the While: Black Freedom on Native Land by Alaina E Roberts

Homeland: My Father Dreams of Palestine by Reem Madooh and Hannah Moushabeck

When Franny Stands Up by Eden Robins

Birdie by Tracey Lindberg

Take Us to Your Chief and Other Stories by Drew Hayden Taylor

Moon of the Turning Leaves by Waubgeshig Rice

White Horse by Erika T Wurth

Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto by Vine Deloria Jr

Venco by Cherie Dimaline

This Wound is a World by Billy-Ray Belcourt

Rez Dogs by Joseph Bruchac

Falling Back in Love with Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls by Kai Cheng Thom

Sheine Lende by Darcie Little Badger

Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse

The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez

The Book of Bill by Alex Hirsch

How I Became a Ghost: A Choctaw Trail of Tears Story by Tim Tingle

Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard and Juana Martinez-Neal

Survivng the City by Natasha Donovan and Tasha Spillett

Nelvana of the Northern Lights by Adrian Dingle, Rachel Richey, and Hope Nicholson

Sugar Falls: A Residential School Story by David A Robertson and Scott B Henderson

Pemmican Wars by Katherena Vermette

Two Tribes by Emily Bowen Cohen

[bibibitchery]

i think a lot about when i was in high school and my family and i went to Hawaii on vacation; while there, we visited a museum of sorts telling the story of the colonization of Hawaii. of course, when learning about it, my family (all white) thought that it was a boring story because a queen stepping down to “allow her state to be a part of the greatest nation in the world” was nothing new. i, being who i am, of course explained that i was pretty sure that the american occupation was not something that Queen Lili'uokalani felt as though she could prevent, so the “stepping down” was most likely coerced. my mother, as one would expect, accused me of deliberately trying to “ruin the family vacation by getting political,” when i told her that history is inherently political, she got pissed and didn’t talk to me for the rest of the day.

it pissed me off (and continues to piss me off) that not only does my mother systematically fail to truly be a “white ally”(as she likes to call herself) by straight up rejecting history and demanding that i stop taking about the truth, but also it pisses me off that this is how the colonization of Hawaii by the united states is depicted, and it is how most people accept it.

[screechfoxes]

24!

24. Did you DNF anything? Why?

The King in Yellow by Robert W. Chambers. it just didn't grab me, ironically! I got through the first story, I think?

Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen by Queen Lili'uokalani. it also didn't grab me; it's written in a very dry Victorian style and the part I read was an awful lot of names and not much else