Melvin “Mel” Madison Masao Masuda
Jan. 1, 1943 – March 19, 2025
By Hailama Farden, OHA Senior Director of Hawaiian Cultural Affairs
The Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) honors the life of OHA public policy advocate Melvin “Mel” Masuda, Esq., who passed away on March 19. I met Mel when I joined OHA in 2024 – an energetic kupuna who introduced himself to me as “Maka.” He had joined OHA in January 2023 and his work here included tracking legislative bills and writing testimony. However, his service to the lāhui began decades ago and those in the know knew him as a legal scholar, a journalist, a warrior for justice, defender of the people and a tireless advocate for Native Hawaiian rights.
Born on the island of Maui during WWII, Melvin “Mel” Masuda came from humble origins. His mother, Setsuyo Ono, grew up on the sugar plantation in Puʻunene, Maui. His father, Tatsuo Masuda, was a Japanese immigrant who came to Hawaiʻi in 1920 at the age of 13 to work on the sugar plantation in Lahaina. Mel was the second of three boys born to the couple – he had an older brother, Richard, and a younger brother, Roy.
As a youngster, Mel was deeply curious and believed in the power of words followed by action. While attending Wailuku Elementary School, he discovered the public library on High Street and a whole new world opened up to him.
While Mel was still in elementary school, the ʻohana moved to Oʻahu. A brilliant student, Mel was editor-in-chief of the school newspaper at Roosevelt High School and won several essay contests. That led to him working as a reporter for the Honolulu Advertiser while still in high school – only the third person of color to work in its newsroom.
At UH Mānoa, Mel took advanced placement courses and applied to and was accepted at both Stanford and Princeton universities. He chose Princeton, becoming the first Roosevelt graduate to attend the prestigious institution.
While there, Mel served as managing editor for the Daily Princetonian newspaper, earning accolades for his investigative journalism. He then attended Yale Law School where he earned a seat on the Yale Law Journal.
After graduating with his juris doctorate and passing the Hawaiʻi Bar Exam, he clerked for Chief Justice William S. Richardson, contributing to landmark cases that shaped the legal landscape of Hawaiʻi.
But it was the 1960s and there was a military draft. Mel opted to join the 411th Engineers Battalion at Fort DeRussy as an army reservist, serving for six years. With a recommendation from Chief Justice Richardson, Mel was selected as a White House Fellow – the first person selected from Hawaiʻi and only the second of Asian American ancestry.
His work in Washington, D.C., led to an invitation to study at Harvard’s Kennedy School where he earned a master’s degree in public administration, making him one of the few people in the world to have graduated from Princeton, Yale and Harvard.
As an attorney in private practice and a lifelong advocate for Native Hawaiians, Mel stood shoulder to shoulder with Kahu Abraham Akaka to protest the Hawaiʻi Land Reform Act of 1967, which allowed the state government to condemn land owned by large landowners and transfer the land to homeowners living on leasehold property – a law which adversely affected Aliʻi Trust landowners like Kamehameha Schools.
In the 1970s, Mel became a close friend of George Jarrett Helm, Jr., using his legal skills to help Helm found Hui Alaloa and later, the Protect Kahoʻolawe ʻOhana – both seminal organizations associated with the Hawaiian Renaissance and Hawaiian rights movement. For years Mel served as the organization’s pro-bono attorney, actively fighting for an end to the bombing and for the return of Kahoʻolawe to the Hawaiian people.
George was lost at sea off Kahoʻolawe in 1977. Through his tears, Mel authored the liner notes for the album, “George Helm: A True Hawaiian,” posthumously released the same year.
As an educator, Mel nurtured generations of legal minds, serving as a professor of law at the Hawaiʻi Pacific University for 25 years. There, he established legal programs, mentored students and created innovative courses to ensure that his students understood that knowledge was a tool for empowerment.
His 1994 article “Do you have to be Hawaiian to Love the Land?” eloquently captured his unwavering commitment to aloha ʻāina and justice for Native Hawaiians.
Throughout his life, Mel continued to fight for the voiceless. In 2019, already well into his 70s, Mel acted as attorney for six defendants in the Kahuku Wind Farm case. And in 2023, he joined OHA as a public policy advocate, continuing to use his skills, knowledge and expertise to serve the Native Hawaiian community.
Mel is survived by his wife, Karen Masuda; son Makamae (Allison) Masuda; daughter Kaiewa (Matthew) Muranaka; and grandchildren Ikaika, Kapono, Kahiau and Keolaloa.
Mel’s life was interwoven with the struggles and triumphs of the Hawaiian people; his legacy is one of service, courage, and dedication to the oppressed. His story echoes the very principles of Psalm 82:3-4 which says: “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
Mel Masuda spent his entire life defending the weak, uplifting the needy and delivering justice. He is honored as a true protector of the land and its people.
Aloha ʻoe, Mel. Your legacy lives on in the justice you fought for, the students you inspired, and the hearts of all who had the privilege of knowing you.
 honors the life of OHA public policy advocate Melvin “Mel” Masuda, Esq., who passed away on March 19.){kind=link}