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1 year ago
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"If Oprah wanted to help, she’d give up the land she’s stolen."
Over the weekend, Oprah made headlines for reportedly being denied entry to the War Memorial Complex in Wailuku, which currently serves as an emergency shelter for survivors of the Maui Fires.
Vera Anderson / WireImage / Getty Images
With the death toll currently at 99 people, the fires have been utterly devastating. An estimated 2,200 structures — mostly residential — have been damaged or destroyed, and 2,170 acres have burned. As many as 4,500 people have been displaced from their homes.
Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images
When Oprah showed up with a CBS News crew, the TV mogul was informed that no camera crews or journalists were allowed inside, out of respect for those seeking shelter and safety.
The 69-year-old ended up leaving the TV crew outside so she could go in and speak with the survivors. She told BBC that she found out what people needed, then shopped at Walmart and Costco so she could hand out supplies like pillows, shampoo, and diapers. Outside, she and CBS News spoke to some victims and volunteers.
The county of Maui shared a statement on Facebook, writing, "To clarify, Oprah was able to visit our shelter, and we thank her for instructing media journalists and camera crews to remain outside. We welcome Oprah to continue to uplift our community’s spirit and give her aloha to victims of the tragic disaster."
CBS News / Via cbsnews.com
"Her visit inside of the shelter today was truly heartwarming, and we appreciate her understanding of our policy of having no camera crews or reporters accompanying dignitaries and celebrities in our emergency shelters. Mahalo."
Since the fires began, people have called out Oprah on social media, and this situation has only deepened the debate over her controversial presence on Maui. The TV personality has been a part-time resident of the island since the early 2000s, and she owns over 2,000 acres on Maui — 870 of which were just purchased earlier this year.
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Meanwhile, Kānaka Maoli (Native Hawaiians) are being priced out of their ancestral homeland and are overrepresented in the homeless population.
On Sunday, Oprah shared a video on Instagram, where she discussed her visit to the emergency shelter and some of the people she met there. "And at some point, I will make a major donation after all of the smoke and ash have settled here and we figure out what the rebuilding is going to look like," she said. This only fueled the criticism she received online.
Many called on Oprah to return or open up her "stolen land":
Wealthy individuals like Oprah are settler colonial agents, buying up Hawaiian land by the thousands of acres and in doing so forcing Kānaka Maoli away off of the land in which they’re using as vacation properties. If Oprah wanted to help, she’d give up the land she’s stolen. https://t.co/lAC8FAW2LV
— James Ray ☭ (@GoodVibePolitik) August 14, 2023I personally don’t care if @Oprah comes bearing pillows & cots.
What she should be doing is returning the 1000acres of land she occupies. Just this year alone she swooped in & bought 870acres of land on Maui.
She can afford to return our lands to our people in a climate crisis.
Some have asked Oprah to "open her wallet":
So is Oprah gonna open her wallet to help rebuild Maui and preserve as much as possible the same way she opened her wallet to buy all that land?
— Maria Renee Leiataua (@marleiat) August 10, 2023Why not donate ALL of her land back to the Indigenous people? She hardly needs it. Why not fund relief efforts NOW & not just when the smoke settles & people "figure out" how the land will be used?
— Auntie Cleis Abeni 💛☮️⚧ (@CleisAbeni) August 14, 2023And others accused Oprah of "looking for a photo op":
Disaster zone culture vulture Oprah needs to stop walking into Maui recovery hubs with empty hands looking for a photo op.
Why don’t you return the land you stole from Kanaka Maoli first? I hear Maui residents are looking for housing options…
Write a check & stay at your house
96 dead and @Oprah is angling for photo ops. Leave the island and a substantial amount of your wealth to Kānaka Maoli to rebuild what has been stolen and destroyed by settler colonialism. That’s how you help Maui.
— Rupa Marya, MD (@DrRupaMarya) August 14, 2023Of course, not everyone is critical of Oprah. Nonprofit organization Kāko'o Haleakalā shared clips of Oprah passing out supplies on Instagram and wrote, "Mahalo Nui @oprah for following through! She returned with cots, pillows, and toiletries for the people in the shelter at in Wailuku. She even spent some time with the people there. It was very much appreciated."
And some Native Hawaiians thanked Oprah for her pledge to donate in the future:
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