Dustin Barca’s Aloha Aina March

Dustin Barca tells pro surfing to step up and fight; Pro Surfing marches through Haleiwa behind him… All photos by Laserwolf Before Dustin Barca and his crew came along, it was Mo’nsanto, mo’ problems in Hawaii, and especially on Kauai. The island, as you’re quite possibly aware, has become a ground zero for pesticide testing, and engineering and development of GMOs (genetically modified organisms). Like the boss that he is, Barca’s fought tirelessly against it, the most recent success of which saw Bill 2491 passed. The bill removes the cloak behind which these corps operate, demanding full transparency in their actions, as well as bringing the requirement for buffering around testing zones (like, uh, schools…). As Dustin told Stab, “They must have something to hide if they’re fighting it that hard too.” At the Surfer Poll Awards, Dustin and his associates, Hawaii Seed and ‘Ohana ‘O Kaua’i, were awarded the Agent Of Change Award. He got on stage, gave a very emotional speech, and then essentially called out everyone in the room, telling them they needed less of themselves on their social media, and more about worthwhile things (like cleansing surfing’s mecca of the toxic growth). He was passionate, not rude. He told them that on Sunday, December 15, they should march with him to protect Haleiwa. They heard him. What was this particular amount? Many things, but most particularly: In 2014, Monsanto has the option of renewing their lease of 1033 acres in Hale’iwa for another 10 years from Kamehema Schools. If they do renew, it’s all bad. And Barca ain’t having it. Despite the rain, the A-List showed up to support Barca. “It was pretty rad down there, people were fired up,” says Laserwolf, who was documenting and supporting simultaneously. “The cops pulled the permit from us but we rallied anyway. Barca lead the way like a true warrior going into battle.” We don’t doubt that one bit.