Last week was Samoan Language week. To acknowledge the end of the week Helylani Luafitu gave a speech to the school. We also had Tiara Nafatali and Uaine Tavae perform a Samoan dance and everyone on stage for assembly was presented with a lei.

Solomua Helylani Luafitu speech.

"Jerusalem, oh Jerusalem if I ever forget you let my right hand forget her skills.

If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth".

Talofa lava, my name is Solomua Helylani Luafitu, I am 15 years of age and am of Samoan ethnicity

What are the challenges Pacific Islanders are facing in the 21st century :

Yes I can name a few 

-The expectation of my parents and family for me - my parents always tell me “ Helylagi, it is straight A’s or the highway”. It is hard to live up to my parents high standards and I struggle to keep up.

-Peer pressure; the feeling of wanting to belong & to not stand out as an outcast, agreeing to do things you know your parents won't let you do & those friends that lead you astray and take away the focus from your studies.

-Domestic violence within our homes. It affects our minds emotionally and has a bad impact on the kind of person we want to be. 

-Teen pregnancies is also one of the major struggles for our Pacific Island teenage girls that is not often discussed.

But today I have chosen to speak about Identity loss. The loss of my identity. Ua leiloa lou faasinomaga.

I have lost my culture - the dignity of my Samoan culture, the love and respect for my people.

I have lost my language - the beauty of speaking language. The faasamoa that could have identified me from the many Pacific Island languages.

I have lost the taste of native food - e momoo iai le samoa moni.

And most of all, I have lost how to carry myself as a tamaitai Samoa.

At home, it gets harder and harder to communicate with relatives and elders due to my inability to speak  Samoan. My parents migrated from Samoa back in 2007 for the sole purpose of a better future for my sisters and I. It means we left behind so many other things including how to live and how to speak as a Samoan.

Every day I get asked this question day in and day out. “Where are you from”. In my head I know i'm a passionate teine Samoa who takes pride in her culture, in fact I was born there but I hesitate because the cells of my brain speeds ahead to what the next question will be. “Do you speak Samoan”. I stand there with complete disappointment knowing that I cannot speak the language anymore, and it all leaves me to this one question I ask myself. “Who am I.”

Church. It is supposed to be another place of learning for Pacific Islanders but I struggle when sermons and youth programs are being conducted in the Samoan language. I tune off, lose focus, daydream and start thinking about the massive lunch we’re gonna have after church. Then go home. Go home feeling empty and like a total waste because I didn't understand any of it. The struggle is real and it is a shame.

What defines a tamaitai Samoa? You can tell in the dignified way she holds herself upright, the way she walks with grace and the eloquence of her speech. She upholds the values of her culture and knows her place at home school and church. It is very important for a tamaitai Samoa to know how to carry herself wherever she goes. There is a saying “I cannot change the direction of the wind but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.

Parents, they are our first teachers at home. Ask them to talk to you in your native language. Mandela once quoted “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, it goes to his head. But if you talk to him in HIS language, it goes to his heart”. 

Proverb 22:6 says “Train up a child in the way he should, even when he is old he will not depart from it”. Often at times we forget that the English language will always live on because it is used everywhere in the world. Our pasifika language comes from small countries and once they’re gone, that’s it. Our language is what makes us, US. It’s our identity and our treasure and we cannot lose this piece of gold. It is how we are able to connect with our ancestors as what we speak now was what they once spoke.

So, what is our excuse ? We should all learn our mother tongue language.

Last year I was blessed to spend time with my grandfather who told me “ Lani, learn your faasamoa because no matter how fast or how fluent you can speak English, it will never transform you into a palagi or make you less of a Samoan. Because your skin tells something different. It tells something unique”.

Our culture is our identity, without culture we have no identity. A person is defined by their language and culture. Our language, our beliefs, our traditions, and our values make us who we are. If we lose these elements we become just like everybody. 

As you all know, this week is Samoan language week, although it’s been great hearing students and teachers appreciate my culture and it’s language, it’s not just about the language and discussing topics such as traditional dances and learning how to say “talofa lava” , more importantly it’s about the history of Samoa and the blood and sweat they poured in to building a future for Samoa and its people. It’s about the mau movement and how Samoa peacefully held a protest for their independence but were later killed by the NZ force.  It's about how our leader Tupua Tamasese shed his blood for Samoa and it’s about how Pacific Islanders are going to tell that story and how we’re going to keep our history alive. 

My advice is to encourage the sustainability of our culture. Maintain it so it will not be lost. This is our culture, our identity and birthright as a proud Samoan. A proud pacific islander. As the Samoan saying goes. “E mamae le tavae i ona fulu” “The tavae bird takes pride in its feathers” so let us take pride in our culture, let’s be proud of where we came from.

Soifua