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 Who
We Are
Compared to other Cambodian communities on the mainland, such as those
in Long Beach, CA, or Lowell, MA, and to other ethnic groups in Hawaii,
the Cambodian community of Hawaii is small in number. There are approximately
60 Khmer families in Hawaii, representing a population of about 300 people.
We may be small number; however, we are not smaller in spirit. Cambodians
in Hawaii are resilient and now represent many different professions—farmers,
accountants, professors, craftsmen, and entrepreneurs. We contribute
to American culture in many ways. Our children attend American schools,
speak English, study American history, play American sports, and strive
toward achieving the American dream. Yet while we have adjusted our practices
to fit our lives in the United States, we continue to celebrate our identity
as Khmer.
Mission Statement
The Cambodian Community of Hawaii (CCH) is a non-profit organization
dedicated to promoting and preserving Khmer (Cambodian) culture, to supporting
interaction and understanding among those who bear interest in Cambodia
and her culture and people, and to enhancing the economic, cultural,
and social quality of life of Cambodians and Cambodian Americans regardless
of political affiliation, race, sex, or religion. CCH’s activities
include small business development, education, training, and multi-community
collaboration for social and economic programs. Based in Honolulu, the
CCH serves Cambodians and Cambodian Americans throughout the state of
Hawaii.
Vision Statement
CCH envisions a community in which Cambodian history, culture, and contemporary
issues are valued as part of American society, and in which Cambodian
Americans in Hawaii are self-reliant, self-sustaining, responsible, empowered,
and involved in addressing individual, community, and global challenges.
History
The Cambodian Community of Hawaii (CCH) has been meeting informally
for decades, although it was not officially formed/incorporated until
February 2005. It was at that time that CCH elected officers, and began
to really pull together as a community to plan an event—our New
Year celebration, held in April 2005. During the planning of this event,
we were able to see community support, participation, and involvement
in action, as everyone pulled together to coordinate this most important
occasion. The 2005 New Year celebration was the largest in the history
of the Cambodian Community of Hawaii, and just as we commemorated the
beginning of a New Year, we also deemed it the launching point for new
opportunities, goals, and dreams. Planning such an event takes participation
for all segments of the community, as we needed to prepare a cultural
program, cook and serve food for 500 people (the event was and will continue
to be open to the public), and truly organize ourselves as never before
in order to get things done. We as a community elicited support from
both local and state officials, and were able to secure both a Mayor’s
proclamation and several letters of support for our event. Representatives
of the Mayor’s office, Governor’s office, and Congressman
Ed Case’s office were able to attend the New Year to offer words
of encouragement and respect for our traditions and our event.
Because Cambodians in Hawaii are one of the least familiar (indeed,
even in books chronicling the various Asian ethnic groups in Hawaii,
we are often omitted), most of the public is likely unaware of the historical
and cultural background of their Khmer neighbors. During the Khmer Rouge
regime (1975-1979) and surrounding years of civil war, hundreds of thousands
of Cambodians died of starvation, disease, overwork, and execution. Those
who escaped faced hardship in their new homelands as well;and continue
to suffer high levels of poverty, discrimination and harassment , post-traumatic
stress disorder, gang activity and violence, and general lack of understanding
of Khmer culture by the larger American society. Nonetheless, our people
have overcome great obstacles, and this resilience has become part of
our identity—and it is in that spirit we strive
to develop and implement projects that will clearly improve the social
and economic situation of our community.
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