I don’t think that folk or alternative medicine is a good thing at all – every ethnic group used to have folk medicine, and the reason we don’t allow it in the modern world is because it’s full of nonsense – but if the state does decide to allow it, maybe they can create some category that makes it clear that it’s folk medicine. Has happened for some forms of alternative medicine.

I think that a better approach would be to conform to modern medical standards, and if traditional midwives want to do additional stuff on top of that to conform to cultural traditions, great.

In preparation for her testimony, Ki’i says she honored many of those traditions — just like she does when attending a birth — by consuming traditional foods and Hawai’ian teas, as well as spending time in the ocean after meeting with attorneys. “Before court, we opened in ceremony through prayers below the courthouse — we held each other and called in what was needed,” she explained. “We made lei and everyone received lei, particularly ti leaf lei, which is used for cleansing, purification and protection.

See, this is what I’m concerned about. If you’re doing real medicine and giving someone a leaf lei because it makes them happy, no problem. Can get certified and do that under the existing system. But if you’re giving someone a leaf lei instead of medicine, then there’s a problem.

Like, my ancestors thought that an excess of a humor of fire was a real medical problem. That’s a real tradition. It’s also nonsense. And there’s a reason why we don’t let people run around acting as a doctor and following those practices any more.