traditions and rebuilt the way the people of maui want it built, not the way others want it built. i m joined now by bill weir on the island of maui. what have people there been saying they wanted to hear from the president? how was he received? reporter: i think it s pretty obvious that the white house had heard in advance concerns from sort of working class hawaiians and multigenerational locals here who said they really wanted to be listened to. they wanted a seat at the table for how this place is rebuilt. you have to understand, there s been sort of generations of tensions, as sugar cane was replaced by tourism, and water rights were taken to fuel these million dollar neighborhoods and resorts, while a lot of times the working class, the life guards, the waiters, the performers at the tiki shows were being cut out, priced out of their own land. he said we re going to pay attention to ancestral land and
the help they need? kaitlan, i literally just hung up with a community leader here well-known and renowned on the island. you can see in my reporting, you ve met him, uncle archie he s a hall of fame waterman lifeguards, surfer extraordinary. he pioneered jet skis, jet skis rescued and towing. he said the president actually got out of his motorcade and came to a very specific sacred place. apologies to my hawaiian friends of a butcher pronunciation, but he came to and gave a offering. he went out of his way to pass on the blessings a hawaiian tradition to the people and he says that went so far for everyone there, and they had conversations about the future, about rebuilding this place. the main concern about working class hawaiians and multigenerational locals here is that they ll be left out of the rebuilding and that optimal
for everyone there. and they had conversations about the future, about rebuilding this place, the main concern about sort of working class hawaiians and multigenerational locals here is that they will be left out of the rebuilding, and that, ultimately moneyed interests will just come in and buy up all this coveted paradise here and converted into resorts and leave them behind. he says the conversation so far is very encouraging, but it s just a conversation. and he told me when we met in his sort of called a command post, when locals were literally taking care of themselves, that he hopes this sort of compassion that the world is showing us, the nation is showing us now, that it s sustainable, that it will be forgotten in a couple of weeks. and then, it s sort of the big moneyed interests, that vulture capitalists will come in and have their way with people who are vulnerable here. but that s just one impression from one community leader. of course, there are others who protested his