Haunani-Kay Trask, a Native Hawaiian activist, educator, scholar and poet, strove to empower Native Hawaiians who had been deprived of their language and culture. This paper examines how Trask struggled for psychological decolonization of Native Hawaiians as an educator. Trask fought against cultural and educational colonialism by revitalizing Hawaiian culture and language at the university, encouraging the students to transform knowledge into power. Her strategy was to turn native culture into the core of resistance. From Trask’s classes, psychological decolonization had begun, which contributed to making Native Hawaiians develop a sense of self-esteem. She succeeded in nurturing the next generation as leaders and activists in the community. Furthermore, Trask had to fight against systemic discrimination, intersecting with race, gender, ethnicity, and colonialism. Ultimately, Trask provided Native Hawaiians with hope and the possibilities for social change, empowering and nurturing generations of Native Hawaiians who would devote themselves to their Hawaiian community.
