Five women spoke about their suffering at the hands of government at a panel held last night at the Graduate School of Education.

About 100 people attended the panel, titled "Political Empowerment: Lessons from Indigenous Women."

The women had been forced to leave their homes--in Hawaii, Alaska and Mexico. From a massacre by the Mexican government to an influx in Hawaiian tourism, each woman had a different story to tell regarding her displacements.

Jennifer Schirmer, a lecturer on social studies and the panel's moderator, said she hoped the evening would make women more aware of gender issues, which are "often ignored" in the world.

She said the panel was designed to show "what women, indeed all of us, can learn about political empowerment from indigenous women." Each of the women who spoke is a leader in the fight for rights of her indigenous community.

At the beginning of her presentation, Hawaiian poet and activist Haunani-Kay Trask asked to see how many in attendance had been to Hawaii as tourists. About 10 raised their hands.

"That's too many," she said.

Trask spoke of the plight of the indigenous Hawaiians, who she said are abused by the American government.

"We have never been asked whether we want to be American," she said. And the ratio of 30 tourists to each native Hawaiian is, she said, unacceptable.