An aerial view of Hana, Hawaii. Photo by KanoaWithington via Wikimedia Commons

What does a group calling itself the Hou 1778 Hawaiians have in common with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump? Frederich Trenchard connects the movement for Native Hawaiian self-determination with the real estate mogul:

The one thing the 50 states that make up the United States of America (not counting insular territories) have in abundance is their claim to land. That vast amount of land is in large part Indian and Indigenous peoples land. There are some who say this enormous quantity of land, the New World, accounts for what Mr. Trump refers to in his stump speeches as that lost American greatness.

Land and buildings go together. Having some kind of enterprise inside a building is where the money is. Mr. Trump constructs buildings and his many enterprises come up with ways to use buildings to generate large amounts of cash. Along with this comes jobs.

So it is not unreasonable to consider it natural for Mr. Trump to look out across the vast reaches of American land and see springing up a vast number of new buildings and jobs.

A native Hawaiian Chief, Maui Loa, also had the same vision, so he got in touch with one of the Trump Organization's top executives and convinced him to analyze the Indian land situation in the 50th state, Hawaii. Chief Maui Loa also contacted some Indian tribes considered Indian Country's top job makers.

Get the Story:
Frederich Trenchard: Donald Trump and Hawaii's Indian Land (Indian Country Today 4/5)

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