>-----Original Message-----
>From: rob wilson
[mailto:rwilson@hawaii.edu]
>Sent: April 26, 2001 4:46 PM
>To: CULTSTUD-L: A listserv devoted to
Cultural Studies
>Subject: [cultstud-l] Re:UH Manoa
Ethnic Studies Statement on Cayetano
>Chair (fwd)
>
>
>
>Please add if you can or will your
venom, comments, rage, and/or insight
>into this obscenity at UCLA, all in the
context of the strikes at U of
>Hawai'i and across Hawai'i...it would be like nominating
Henry Kissinger
>chair in global peace studies) [see below]
>----------
>Forwarded message
>Date: Thu, 26 Apr 2001 05:47:27 -1000
(HST) From: rob wilson
><rwilson@hawaii.edu> To: Jonathan
Y Okamura <okamuraj@hawaii.edu> Cc:
>incul-l@hawaii.edu Subject: Re: UH
Manoa Ethnic Studies Statement on
>Cayetano Chair (fwd)
>
>Dear Jonathan, Thanks for doing this
protest letter to Asian American
>Studies Center at UCLA-- the idea of a
Ben Cayetano chair is such an
>obscenity it makes me want to weep here
in the crazed theory forests of UC
>Santa Cruz. Was Russell Leong aware of this Cayetano deification at such
>a moment? I realize the Pacific Rim players have little or no idea what
>is going on in peripheral sites of the
interior Pacific, but this one
>breaks all records for blind sublimation
to an anti-education governor who
>stands for reactionary forces of
downsizing, union-breaking and utter
>dermoralization of teachers high and
low. Please add my name to your list
>of protesters,
>Rob Wilson Professor of
transnational/postcolonial
>literatures, Oakes College, UC Santa
Cruz
>
>On Wed, 25 Apr 2001, Jonathan Y Okamura
wrote:
>
>> Hi All,
>> Below
is a letter that the Ethnic Studies Department faculty at UH
>> Manoa sent to the UCLA Asian
American Studies Center just prior
>to the end
>> of our 13 day strike on April
18. The K-12 teachers' strike ended
today
>> after their 20 day strike, the
longest in Hawai'i education history.
>> Early analyses of the strikes
already blame Gov. Ben Cayetano for their
>> occurrence because of his unwillingness
to negotiate seriously:
>"There is an
>> overwhelming opinion that the
education strike is due almost
>entirely to him"
>> (Honolulu Weekly, April 18-24,
2001, p. 5). An article in the Hawaii
>> Filipino Chronicle (April 16,
2001, p. 6) by UH Manoa Strike Coordinator
>> Dean Alegado noted Cayetano's
pre-strike "campaign to vilify
>public school
>> teachers and UH professors as a
'bunch of lazy people who only work 9
>> months a year but get paid for 12
months.'" Does this mean that
>recipients of
>> the Cayetano chair will have to
work a full calendar year
>instead of the usual
>> academic year? Note that one of Cayetano's contract demands
was that UH
>> faculty not receive any health
care or retirement benefits during the
>> summer because we supposedly are
not working.
>> We
ask for your support in bringing this issue to the attention of
>> the larger community.
>>
>>
>> April 17, 2001
>>
>> Dr. Don Nakanishi
>> Asian American Studies Center
>> 3230 Campbell Hall, Box 951546
>> Los Angeles, CA 90095-1546
>>
>> Dear Dr. Nakanishi:
>>
>> We
are extremely concerned and dismayed that an endowed chair for
>> the "Benjamin Cayetano
Professor in Public Policy and American Politics"
>> has been established at the Asian
American Studies Center at UCLA. The
>> University of Hawaii Professional
Assembly (UHPA), representing
>more than
>> 3,000 UH faculty, and the Hawaii
State Teachers Association (HSTA),
>> representing nearly 13,000 public
school teachers, have been on strike
>> since April 5, 2001, thus shutting
down for the first time in
>the nation's
>> history an entire state public
education system.
>>
>> Governor
Cayetano's policies and actions before and during the
>> strikes by UHPA and the HSTA can
hardly be considered worthy of academic
>> distinction and instead are
reminiscent of the vindictive and repressive
>> tactics of the Hawaiian Sugar
Planters Association against striking
>> Japanese and Filipino plantation
laborers in the 1920s. Defying all
>> logic, Cayetano has declared
striking state workers on
>"unauthorized leave
>> without pay" and therefore
not entitled to health care benefits.
He has
>> attempted to break the strikes and
had workers endure further pay losses
>> by unnecessarily delaying the
resumption of contract negotiations for a
>> full week after the strikes
began. While he has claimed there are
>> insufficient funds for the salary
increases sought by UHPA and HSTA, the
>> state Senate has designated $200M
for such pay raises and
>thereby publicly
>> challenged Cayetano's
credibility. While campaigning on
campus as "The
>> Education Governor" in 1994,
Cayetano promised he would not cut the
>> University of Hawai'i budget and
then proceeded to do just that for seven
>> consecutive years, making UH Manoa
the only public university in the
>> nation to suffer such a fate. Clearly, Cayetano's anti-education and
>> anti-labor public policies do not
merit having an academic chair
>named for
>> him at a prestigious university
such as UCLA.
>>
>> We
strongly urge you to reconsider establishing a chair in the
>> name of Cayetano since such an
association with the Asian
>American Studies
>> Center can only damage its well
established and highly respected
>> reputation for academic integrity,
first-rate scholarship, and community
>> advocacy.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>>
>>
>
>> Ibrahim
Aoude, Chair
>> (On
behalf of Ethnic
>Studies faculty)
>> Dean
Alegado
>> Ulla
Hassager
>> Noel
Kent
>> Greg
Mark
>> Jonathan
Okamura
>> Kathryn
Takara
>>
>>
>>
>>