(Note: This is the first installment of a three-part series discussing recent legal and political challenges to the Kamehameha Schools and other institutions designed to benefit the native Hawaiian people. Read parts 2 and 3.)

Last Thursday my alma mater, Kamehameha Schools, was sued by “an unidentified non-Hawaiian student.” The school was founded by Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, the last direct descendant of Kamehameha I, via a trust established by her will.

The results of this lawsuit will have lasting and profound implications for every native Hawaiian and Hawai’i resident alike.

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Tomorrow is King Kamehameha Day, a state holiday in honor of the first monarch of the unified Hawaiian Islands. Kamehameha was well-loved by his people, because he was fair in just in his rule of the new kingdom. However, even though Kamehameha was a great man, it should be noted that, like everybody else, he had many undesirable character traits.

With the exception of Kaua’i and Ni’ihau, all of the major Hawaiian Islands were added to the kingdom by overthrowing the chiefs of the island, often in a surprise attack. Kamehameha was entrusted with the war god Kuka’ilimoku, and soon after led a revolt against the chief of Hawai’i, Kiwala’o, to begin acquiring land.

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You’ll probably have a hard time finding it here. The truth is, I’m much more likely to blog about stuff on the other side of the ocean than on my home, just because it’s so common and everyday to me. If what you’re looking for is Hawai’i, however, you may find what you’re looking for at Ian Lind’s blog. His material tends to be newsy stuff that may or may not be interesting for a non-resident. Not hard to understand, seeing that he used to work for the Star-Bulletin.