
Issues discussed included access to federal healthcare safety nets, the need for education and youth empowerment, bullying and discrimination in public schools, and citizenship issues related to military service.
"My daughter came home and told me she no longer wanted to go to school, because someone said she was ugly because she was Micronesian," related one parent. "I told her to go back to school, and to tell the person who told her those things that that she loves them -- and that she is proud to be Micronesian."
Cathy Wasem, Senior Program Management Officer with the Office of Pacific Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, also urged attendees with healthcare concerns to continue exploring subsidy opportunities under the Affordable Care Act, although she noted that Hawai'i's health exchange has continued to encounter difficulties in implementation.