When the Chamorros of Guam are debating future political status, they must consider the pros and cons.

     Many point to the trickle of Military Spending and sub-standard social assistance as invaluable benefits that the U.S. bestows upon the Guamanians. However, it’s the United States that benefits far more from Guam .

     To the U.S. , a superpower, the Chamorros’ homeland is strategically located on the most important pivotal point in Asia .

     The U.S. pays billions for less important locations in Europe/Africa/Asia Minor, and pays Guam nothing for unilaterally fortifying the island with thousands of troops – not to mention that Guam continues to be the largest U.S. Military Bomb Depository outside the continental U.S.A.

     The United States Military and the Department of the Interior control Guamanians’ everyday lives, land, air, and ports.

     They abuse the relationship through the plundering of Guam ecological resources without a penny of compensation.

     The U.S. callously dumps nuclear and other biological waste into Guam ’s deep water.

     The people of Guam pay the U.S. Navy for fresh drinking water pumped from Guam ’s only lake under the control of the Navy.

     The Navy sees fit to quench the thirst of its troops and their dependents without any shame as to even question who owns the water source.

     Without the presence of the U.S. Almighty Dollar, Guam’s reliance on the U.S. would be defunct.

     In the event of military action, how safe is Guam ? Would Guam’s shores be defended as vehemently as the United States ’ own shores? Or would the occupier decamp as assuredly as they have before?

     What is guaranteed is that the U.S. will do what is necessary to preserve itself. And surely, Guam is not the United States .

     The colonization of Guam by the United States remains intact because those that oppose it are not strong enough to change it. To effect change, unification and solidarity are vital – as are bravery, persistence and patience.

     The island businesses are controlled outsiders – mostly by U.S. “carpetbaggers”. It is in their interest to see that the Guamanians, as a whole, are not united on this front. But, ultimately, the real oppressor in the Chamorros’ plight is the patriarch of “modern Guam,” the United States of America .

     Chamorros endure social taxation especially with the United States ’ “open door” immigration policy, making them a minority in their own homeland.

     To initiate change, the Chamorros must first decolonize their thinking and decidedly separate what is good for their children’s future from what is good for the United States .

     Many are opposed to the mass amounts of those immigrating to U.S. soils being channeled to Guam’s shores, but most Chamorros choose not to openly complain despite the displacement of their children in schools and in the job market.

     Silence is deafening and this deafness makes it much easier for recruiters to meet and exceed their quotas when locals turn to the U.S. Armed Forces for employment.

     There, they are accepted as long as they do not question commands and are willing to serve and die.

     All the while, they shall not question why he or she cannot vote for the Commander in Chief, for anyone in the U.S. Senate, or for anyone with voting power in Congress for that matter.

    This completes total control without representation.

     The discussion of Guam ’s present and future status, politically, has been long-winded and unending. So long as discussion persists, those that colonialism benefits will continue to remain stagnant and appreciate current residuals.

     The point is that those in position to affect change are being enabled to not. And as long as Guam remains a U.S. territory, its indigenous people will remain victims of their conqueror.

Wyld  Hook, Livermore , Calif

This essay appeared in the Marianas Variety in 2006

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