Julian Aguon: "On Earning Hope for the Future"
Repost from September 6, 2024
On Wednesday, September 4, I atttended a free talk sponsored by the University of Hawaiʻi – Mānoa Richardson School of Law and UH Mānoa's Better Tomorrow Speaker Series. The talk featured an address by Chamorro human rights lawyer and activist Julian Aguon and a discussion between Aguon and UH Mānoa School of Law Dean Camille Nelson. A recording of part of Aguon's address and the full discussion can be found online.
I first learned about Aguon's work after a close friend gifted me a copy of his 2021 book The Properties of Perpetual Light. Needless to say, when I heard about this talk, I knew I had to be there. Aguon is a gifted storyteller, and his address did not disappoint. He has a masterful weaver of words and truths in impactful ways. While the discussion following his address was extremely insightful for students and practicing lawyers looking to center storytelling and Indigenous knowledge systems in their work, Aguon's initial remarks continue to sit with me.
He spoke on behalf of the thousands of Indigenous Pacific islanders who are currently living in climate-vulnerable lands. The recording begins while Aguon is talking about a particular island community in Micronesia that has asserted its right to self-determine their futures by refusing governmentally mandated relocation. It was heart-wrenching to hear that an Indigenous People may "go down with the sinking ship" that is their beloved ancestral homeland, but it is informed by a firm conviction that their existence is tied to land.
I share this talk because I am still shaken by the revelations that Aguon shared during his brief remarks. I share this talk because I believe there are truths about Hawaʻi and truths about climate change across Oceania that need to be heard by those who do not have relations to these areas. I share this talk because everyday decisions made on the other side of the world can impact and do impact Indigenous Peoples in the Pacific. Some Indigenous Peoples are operating on borrowed time because of the selfish decisions made by others.
Like Aguon, I keep fighting because I am constantly thinking about the world that future generations will inherit. I continue to struggle and transgress boundaries because I have hope for a better, self-determined future. I encourage you to listen to Julian's words and respond to his call for more accountability, more storytelling, more truth-telling at this crucial time.
