Ka‘ū News Briefs Thursday, February 15, 2018

MEASURES BEFORE THE U.S. SENATE TO PROTECT DREAMers, young working and student immigrants brought illegally to the U.S. as children, failed on Thursday. Sen. Mazie Hirono released a statement explaining her votes to help prevent their deportation. "I have consistently supported a clean DREAM Act, and voted in favor of the Coons-McCain amendment today that came very close to it. And while it earned the support of a bipartisan group of 52 senators, the vast majority of Republicans blocked this effort."

Sen. Mazie Hirono spoke on the Senate floor ,  urging passage of measures to protect DREAMers.

     When Coons-McCain failed, she voted for another measure, the Rounds-King amendment, which included DREAMer protection, but also funding for Pres. Donald Trump's wall. Said Hirono, "We were left with only one option to protect the 800,000 current" - recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals - "DACA recipients and an additional one million DREAMers who the President has threatened with deportation. It's for them that I voted for the Rounds-King amendment." Hirono said she voted aye, even though it includes provisions she strongly opposes, including $25 billion for Trump's wall.
     "The Republicans also sought to dismantle our legal, family-based immigration system," said Hirono. "Democrats fought hard to limit the damage. President Trump created this crisis when he cancelled DACA and threw 800,000 young people under the bus. And with his recent veto threat, he has made it abundantly clear that protecting Dreamers is the farthest thing from his mind."
     Two other immigration measures also failed to pass on Thursday. The deadline imposed for replacing DACA is March 5.

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DENNIS "FRESH" ONISHI will become the governor's liaison for East Hawaiʻi beginning Friday. Gov. David Ige announced the appointment on Thursday.

Fresh Onishi is Gov. David Ige's new liaison for East Hawaiʻi, which includes Volcano, Pāhala, and Punaluʻu to Honuʻapo.

     Onishi worked for the County of Hawai‘i for 29 years, including eight years on the Hawai‘i County Council. From 2008 to 2016, Onishi served as chair of the council's Committee on Environmental Management; chair of the Committee on Governmental Relations and Economic Development; and Vice Chair of the Committee on Public Works and Parks and Recreation.
     Onishi has also worked for the Hawai‘i State Association of Counties, and most recently as interim president and chief professional officer of the Hawai‘i Island United Way.
    "Fresh was born and raised in Hilo and has spent most of his life serving the people of Hawai‘i Island. I know that he will continue his exemplary service through the Office of the Governor," said Ige.
     "I will always work hard for the people to make the Big Island a better place to live," Onishi said. Onishi is a graduate of Hilo High School and the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo.

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A BILL THAT REP. TULSI GABBARD DESCRIBES AS UNDERMINING THE AMERICAN DISABILITIES ACT received her no vote on Thursday in Congress. The Americans with Disabilities Act was passed with bipartisan support and signed by Pres. George H. W. Bush in 1990. The new measure, HR620, would place "burdensome requirements on individuals with disabilities, making it
more difficult for them to access equal rights protections," said Gabbard. Nevertheless, HR620 passed the House by a vote of 225-192.
     According to the Hawaii Disability Rights Center, 15 percent of Hawai‘i residents are disabled - higher than the national average. The National Federation for the Blind of Hawai‘i also reported that Hawai‘i is home to roughly 22,700 people with a visual disability.
     Gabbard said, "For more than 25 years, the American Disabilities Act has been instrumental in expanding and protecting fair, equal opportunities for disabled Americans. HR620 unravels this progress, making it easier for employers to skirt around discrimination laws and requiring people with disabilities to jump through hoops for the equal access protections to which they are entitled. I've heard from many community organizations in Hawai‘i that shared how this legislation would hurt our more than 210,000 disabled residents. I stand with them in strong opposition to this harmful legislation."

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, speaking on HR620, which she voted against on Feb. 15.

     National Federation of the Blind of Hawai‘i issued a statement saying the bill would "diminish the rights of blind people by eroding the foundation of the ADA." The ADA assures that all Americans with disabilities "have the right to live free from exclusion and discrimination in any way in American society. The ADA ensures that anyone with a disability can enjoy the benefits of living in our free and open state and country alongside all other citizens. In short, the ADA is the persons with disabilities equality act, which must not be diminished in either its force or effect. We call upon everyone in Hawai‘i and throughout the U. S. to join us in opposing HR620, which is a deceptive attempt to repeal the ADA."
     Aloha State Association of the Deaf issued a statement saying it "strongly opposes this bill because it will affect Deaf, Deaf-Blind, and Hard of Hearing citizens of Hawai‘i."
     Special Olympics Hawai‘i issued a statement, saying that it "strongly supports legislation that guarantees the rights, full participation, and integration of people with intellectual disabilities. We appreciate the progress that has been made towards eliminating the stigma, stereotypes, isolation, and discrimination that people with intellectual disabilities face - most importantly around access to sport, health, and education. We ask Congress to remain vigilant against any erosion of any provisions that have made a substantial difference in the lives of people with disabilities."
     HR620 is opposed by numerous civil rights, disability rights, and other organizations including AARP, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, NAACP, Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities, Paralyzed Veterans of America, Vietnam Veterans of America, American Association of Justice, ACLU, AFSCME, National Disability Rights Network, American Association of People with Disabilities, National Council of Disability, National Alliance on Mental Illness, Easterseals, National Foundation of the Blind, and United Cerebral Palsy.