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"A comprehensive, collaborative elections resource."
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John A. Burns: The Man and His Times
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| Parent | Parent |
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| Title | John A. Burns: The Man and His Times |
| ASIN | 0824822773 -
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| Category | Biography |
| Contributor | Gerald Farinas |
| Last Modified | Gerald Farinas - January 07, 2004 07:58pm |
| Description | John A. Burns: The Man and His Times
by Dan Boylan and T. Michael Holmes
April 2000
The period 1945-1975 is often referred to as "The Burns Years" in Hawai'i history books, and rightfully so. John A. Burns looms as Hawai'i's most significant political figure of the last half of the twentieth century. A former police captain who would become Hawai'i's first Democratic governor, Burns entered politics at the close of World War II determined to work nothing short of a revolution: overthrow the Republican oligarchy that had ruled the Islands since the late 1800s and turn the Democratic Party into an instrument of social change in Hawaii. Burns worked closely with labor leaders and Japanese-American war veterans who shared his radical vision, forging alliances that would continue throughout his long political career. He was twice elected delegate to Congress and played a pivotal role in bringing statehood to Hawaii before winning the race for governor in 1962. For the next twelve years, over the course of three successive terms, Burns helped to shape many important elements of Hawai'i's social and political structure that continue to this day.
A headstrong, at times undisciplined youth, Jack Burns' early career in the Honolulu Police Department helped shape the man he would become. Known for being fair and honest as well as tough, Burns was well respected by his peers and seemed to have found his calling in life. However, a dual tragedy soon struck: his wife, Bea, contracted polio, and their baby, born prematurely as a result, died shortly after birth. A few days later Burns was suspended briefly from the police force for drunk driving.
Burns emerged from these experiences a changed man - chastened yet stronger and more compassionate. During World War II he headed the Espionage Bureau, whose task was to investigate the loyalty of Hawai'i's Japanese and identify security risks. Burns worked hard to gain the confidence of the Japanese community, and at the same time - with Chuck Mau, a member of the O'ahu County Board of Supervisors, Ernest Murai, Mits Kido, and ILWU labor organizer Jack Kawano - began the task of rebuilding the Democratic Party. When the veterans of the 100th Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team returned to Hawai'i, a new Democratic Party invited them into its ranks with open arms. With the help of Dan Inouye, Dan Aoki, Mike Tokunaga, and Matsy Takabuki, Burns began the task of taking control of Hawai'i's legislature.
John Burns was a political leader of the first order, but he was not a natural politician. His younger colleagues affectionately called him "Old Stone Face." He suffered a string of defeats before being elected to public office. The central feature of Burns' success was the coalition of labor and Americans of Japanese Ancestry he created and worked so hard to sustain as party leader, delegate to Congress, and governor. It took control of Hawai'i's legislature in 1954, its congressional delegation in 1956, and its executive office in 1962 - and has held on to all three ever since. |
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