Keʻeaumoku Kapu has been handing out water, clothes, and emergency supplies to families in need out of the Walgreens parking lot in Lahaina, Maui. He said it is a way to keep himself occupied while he grieves the losses of his community.

“I’m afraid we’re not going to recover from this,” said Kapu, speaking to CBC from his cellphone at the distribution centre Monday.

Kapu is a Kanaka Maoli (a Hawaiian word for their Indigenous people) community leader in Lahaina, and head of the Nā ʻAikāne o Maui Cultural Center — which was destroyed by the fire that ripped through Lahaina.

While members of the community are still grappling with their immediate needs and the death toll from the fire is still being counted, Kapu said he is “frantic” to make sure he is included in the conversations that are happening about what is next for Lahaina.

“I’m hoping that we can get over this hurdle, but at the same time the fear of being erased …” said Kapu.

“Because our island is now turned into a cheaper commodity because there’s nothing more important to save here, you have people coming in willing to buy burned-out places.”

Maui land grabs

Kapu said his family and other members of his community have been contacted by realtors asking to buy their burned-up property.

The office of the governor of Hawaii released a statement warning Maui residents about predatory buyers trying to capitalize on their fear and the financial uncertainty for those who have lost their homes.

In a press conference Wednesday, Governor Josh Green said he is working with the attorney general to put a moratorium on property sales in West Maui.

Social media posts from residents are pleading with people to not sell their properties to these realtors, fearing it will lead to Native Hawaiians being displaced from their homelands.

A non-profit organization called Hawai’i Alliance for Progressive Action has started an online petition to call on governments to use their powers to stop Maui land grabs, support displaced families and ensure decisions are made with Native Hawaiians at the table.

Kapu is urging people not to sell but is worried that people’s fear and desperation may drive them to accept these offers.

“You’re gonna make our children tomorrow orphans within their own land,” said Kapu.

Lahaina holds deep cultural significance to the Hawaiian people and was once the capital of the Hawaiian kingdom. The city is where King Kamehameha III had his royal residence, and unified Hawaii under a single kingdom by defeating the other islands’ chiefs.

Many Hawaiians still recognize it as the original capital today, long after the capital was moved to Honolulu in 1845.

The fire destroyed Lahaina’s historic Front Street, where the cultural centre Kapu ran was located. Inside, the building held many cultural artifacts, like feather capes and helmets, implements, maps and documents.

They were all destroyed.

“Our place was a living place, it was a living museum. It was things that you could actually touch, books that you could actually read, maps that showed a lot of families where they originated from,” said Kapu.

But the loss is bigger than that.

Kapu describes the centre as a gathering place for Indigenous people internationally, where culture was shared for the next generations and people could learn from each other.

Kapu is heartbroken over the loss, and holds himself responsible for the care of the objects inside, though he barely escaped trying to save it, only having time to grab his laptop as he ran out.

Ten minutes later the building was engulfed in flames.

“For Lahaina, I’m afraid what this place can turn into now,” said Kapu, who worries the historic buildings that have been lost could be replaced by private development.

“This is, for us, genocide.”

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