Free virtual public event aimed to shift views, create space, and inspire change
Updated: May 10, 2021
Rooms with a View, presented by HSTA’s Human and Civil Rights (HCR) Committee, aims to connect our community and bring awareness to issues of social and racial justice that impact our schools and students. We want to “make room” for these perspectives in our minds, classrooms, schools, communities, and families.
This two-hour event took place Saturday, May 1, from 9 to 11 a.m., and was free and open to the public. It opened with remarks by our keynote speaker, community advocate Kim Coco Iwamoto. Participants were then invited to join different breakout rooms, each with its own topic of discussion.
Keynote speech
The following is a transcription of Kim Coco Iwamoto’s keynote speech:
“Thank you so much. I feel like I’m always amongst family whenever I get to hang out with the HSTA members, so thank you so much. When Jodi (Kunimitsu, HSTA HCR chair) first invited me to share a few words, I thought of the speech I gave in 2009 at the March for Equality in Washington, D.C. Again, it was 2009 and a lot’s changed since then, but unfortunately, some things kind of have — we’re going through some similar things. If you could remember back then in 2009, we were dealing with the recession of the housing crisis, and we were also dealing with, here in Hawaii, we were dealing with trying to pass marriage equality or some form of it. And then today, obviously we’re dealing with our own pandemic-related recession, as many places are across the country, and we’re also dealing with legislation now trying to limit the access and opportunities of transgender young people.
So I hope you’ll see and hear some concepts contained in the speech, and if I can also just contextualize, the March for Equality in Washington, D.C. in 2009 was about equality on behalf of the LGBT community, so it was broader than what my speech was about. I had a feeling there wouldn’t be this perspective represented on the green; it was actually outdoors. And actually Lady Gaga was right behind me. She was speaking right after me, so I was super nervous. But it was on C-SPAN, and as I was giving the speech, Lyla Berg was texting me, and other people were texting me, and my phone was in my pocket going off, and that was distracting. But here it goes, if you don’t mind. So again, this is from Oct. 11, 2009.
The ongoing discussion about nature versus nurture has been misdirected. The focus should be on bigotry. The increase should be whether bigotry is the result of nature or nurture. Are children born bigots, or is bigotry something that is taught? What are lawmakers teaching our children when they enact or pull discriminatory laws? Laws of separation and exclusion provide our children with the textbooks of hate and lesson plans of prejudice.
Although it may be of little consolation, school boards across the country are adopting more comprehensive anti-discrimination policies. In Hawaii, for instance, my colleagues and I recently expanded our state policy to prohibit discrimination and harassment on the following bases: race, religion, sexual orientation, color, national origin, sex, gender identity and expression, socioeconomic status, physical or mental disability, and physical appearance and characteristics.
Students hear these promises of equal access in schools, yet they observe lawmakers failing to uphold these same principles. Since actions speak louder than words, the message becomes, ‘Do as we say, not as we do.’
Through government action and inaction, our laws and lawmakers are modeling for our children just how to bully, harass, and discriminate. By example, our children are learning how to criminalize the homeless or those who may need mental health services. By example, our children are learning how to silence immigrant families and how to scream when they see someone who looks Arab or Muslim. By example, our children are learning how to deny equality to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender individuals and families.
Perhaps the most tragic lesson of all is that some of our children are learning how to hate themselves.
In the face of this government-sanctioned bigotry, let us not forget the everyday heroes. I am talking about teachers. Every day, teachers equip our children with the skillsets needed to become critical thinkers. Every day, teachers fortify our youth to be able to challenge hypocrisy and remedy injustice. Every day, teachers reinforced self-esteem, resiliency, and imagination. Teachers — compassionate, fair, and effective teachers — empower our children to critically examine the irrational and fear-based underpinnings of bigotry.
In a democracy such as ours, real social change requires a critical mass of critical thinkers.
As cities, counties, and states across the country face budget shortfalls, please support your local public schools and support the many amazing teachers who instill truth, reason, and courage in our children. Truth, reason, and courage are the antidote to bigotry, so let’s support our teachers as they prepare our children, all the children across the United States, for a society that truly delivers on the promise of liberty and justice for all.
So that was my little speech they allowed me to share, even though they literally were trying to get the hook and pull me offstage, because apparently I thought I had more time and they only wanted me to say hello and my name.
But, you know, if you’re going to stand and filibuster for something, I think this is a good topic, and a good perspective to that intersectional work that the HSTA Human and Civil Rights Committee, I think that’s their whole purpose, to work intersectionally and to see yourselves within a community that is multifaceted, diverse, and has a shared kind of vision of what we can do together. So thank you so much for this opportunity.
I did want to share also a few words about some of the topics that you’ll be breaking out in to discuss. It’s kind of interesting to hear this, or when people think about this, but the Stonewall riots, the whole liberation in the United States on gay, lesbian, trans, the formal movement began — or ignited or catalyzed — in a way during the Stonewall riots. As you may know, Stonewall’s a bar. The riots happened the evening after the funeral service for Judy Garland.
But here’s the thing, right? After years and years of being harassed by the police, finally, the decades of being harassed by the police, finally these queens just couldn’t take it anymore. And they didn’t sit silently and hold signs. They actually fought back. It was not a peaceful protest; it was a physical riot. It was the Stonewall riots. And that’s really important, because sometimes when — and I’m not encouraging that, I’m just saying — sometimes that’s what happens; that’s what needs to happen when groups are so physically oppressed.
Somebody made a reference, one of our elders, our ally elders, made a reference to young LGBT people, how they might not know what it feels like to experience that kind of oppression today, because of all the work that other people have done before them to allow them to be a little bit more free as LGBT people. And it was really interesting to me and I thought well gee, that’s true unless you happen to be LGBT and Micronesian in Hawaii. I’m like wow, how free can you feel if your Micronesian-ness is constantly being harassed and questioned by the people who are supposed to protect and serve?
So that’s something I kind of realized, that we’re not all free. And I felt that this way too about some of our our allies in politics who say they’re down with LGBT people, and yet they pass laws criminalizing homelessness. I’m like well, we know there’s a disproportionate rate of LGBT people represented in our homeless counts, and we know that. So when you’re when you’re criminalizing it, and when you’re violent against homeless people, you’re also being violent against a lot of LGBT people too. So that’s something that I think you guys obviously are aware of, and I feel like I’m preaching to the choir, but this is something that these kinds of discussions outside of our rooms, outside of our safe groups, I think are really challenging sometimes for us to keep bringing up, but we have to. Because if we have that information, what is our responsibility to holding that truth and that information and that perspective?”
Rooms and resources
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| Session #1 | Session #2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Room 1 | How are we supporting LGBTQ youth in our classrooms and schools? | Suicide prevention: What does it entail? |
| Room 2 | How does institutional racism contribute to Hawaiʻi’s school-to-prison pipeline and how can we dismantle it? | How can traditional place names revalue indigenous knowledge and wisdom to strengthen pride and identity in all of Hawaiʻi’s people? |
| Room 3 | How are we supporting our Micronesian students in our classrooms and schools? | How can schools innovate to create learning experiences that promote inclusivity and equity over systemic racism and classism? |
| Room 4 | How does sex trafficking impact our schools and students? (Double session) | |
Why are these conversations important?
Several HCR Committee members share their thoughts below.
“When we take the time to understand the issues that affect our students as human beings, we become more effective in educating them as students.” — Jodi Kunimitsu, Maui High, State Chair
“For me, having conversations about inequity in schools is a way to educate myself and be better prepared to navigate discussions I have with my family, friends, and students about tough issues that need change. Discussion propels change.” — Elizabeth Sharrock, Keaʻau Middle, Hilo Chapter
“Standards, standardized tests, grading, and school discipline systems are all tools that can be used to further the learning of our haumāna, but too often the way they are used causes more harm than help. Could we look closely at how these tools can be systematically used to give everyone opportunities?” — Kit Brizuela Absalon, Kahuku High and Intermediate, Windward Chapter
“Talking openly about issues that affect our students now will help them grow as community members when they become adults. This might be uncomfortable for us; this is life for them.” — Daphna Ehrenhalt, Keaʻau Elementary, Hilo Chapter
“These conversations help us educators to value multiple perspectives, identities, and experiences in our multi-ethnic community so that we can continue to grow and strengthen compassion, empathy, and inclusivity in our classrooms, in our school communities, and in our public school system.” — Kapolei Kiʻili, King Kekaulike High, Maui Chapter
“We won’t have equity in education without initiating conversations with those who believe things need to change now. So these types of gatherings are a good starting point. Equity in education will not magically occur from attending a workshop or reading a book, it’s going to come from internal work and groups of educators clamoring to disrupt the ‘but it’s always been done this way’ mindset.” — Jill Yamasawa Fletcher, Kapolei High, Leeward Chapter
“Children need to feel seen, understood, and accepted. In creating these safe spaces for all students to learn, we must address issues of equity and inclusivity.” — Nicole Heinlein, ʻĪao Intermediate, Maui Chapter
About HSTA’s Human and Civil Rights Committee
HSTA’s HCR Committee is made up of volunteer member educators from across the state who work to support and nurture diversity and equity, encourage member engagement in racial and social justice issues to promote non-discriminatory spaces for educators and learners, and support members’ abilities to stand up for and speak out on behalf of students and their community. This work is in line with HSTA’s mission to “promote human and civil rights to support and nurture diversity in our muti-faceted community” and its value to “uphold high standards of truth and ethics.”
About Kim Coco Iwamoto
Kim Coco Iwamoto is a passionate social justice advocate. After attending the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, she landed her dream job in the fashion industry. During this time, she was discriminated against for being transgender and lost her job. This prompted her to change her life course and attend law school. In 1996, she participated in the first national Transgender Lobbying Day in Washington, D.C., and she has been fighting for changes in law to support equality, equity, and inclusivity ever since.
Kim Coco served on the Hawaiʻi State Board of Education from 2006 to 2011. Through her work on the Board and as a member of the Safe Schools Community Advisory Committee for the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education, she worked to create safer environments for LGBTQ+ students. She was also instrumental in shaping the HIDOE’s Guidance on Supports for Transgender Students and fought for laws and policies to better support students with disabilities.
In addition to her political and legal work, Kim Coco is a certified therapeutic foster parent and a volunteer guardian ad litem for Hawaiʻi’s First Circuit Family Court system.