The Scope Project:

I was working on a project called "The Scope" in 2004. A collaborative engagement with Francisco Da Costa in the San Francisco private sector enjoined by an independent publication on social inequity. I had the privilege of sitting down with (D) Hon. Eni Faaleomavaega Hunkin, the late Congressman of American Samoa, to hopefully shed some light on U.S. territory voting rights. Many Americans in these territories were unable to elect a president who represents them, and their congressional representatives were unable to vote on measures that impacted their constituency. Except for Congressman Hunkin, no one was working harder at the time to guarantee that issues in the five US territories with permanent residents—Guam, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the US Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands—were heard in the halls of Congress. Years later, Congresswoman (R) Aumua Coleman took up the mantle and persevered, eventually winning on several fronts. It didn't provide the fulfillment I had hoped for. Because the former congressman died before he could see the fruits of his labor. lf l could speak freely from the heart for a moment. In a strange way, I believe he was trying to urge me not to try to speed things up because we recognize it, or slow it down because the process is an inconvenience, but rather let mother nature do all the heavy lifting and eventually the work. Greatest Mentor and a humbled man.