Although the peak has benefitted the island and the world in many ways, a small but vocal group of Hawaiian activists are protesting the construction of new telescopes there and calling for a stop to observatory construction that is damaging an already sacred place for the island's natives. There are some people who want all telescopes off the summit. As one of the few astronomers on the mountain who actually grew up in Hawaii, he is keenly aware of what a sensitive issue the development of Mauna Kea is to the people of Hawaii. Part of it is not just the physical impact of structures on the site, but their visual presence on mountain. Just seeing the telescopes up there offends some people.
Natives consider the sacred geological site the home of the Hawaiian goddesses of snow and mist.
At a small lake on the volcano, generations of Hawaiians have offered their newborn children's umbilical cords to connect them to the spiritual world. The giant towering domes on the peak are another reminder of what indigenous Hawaiians see as stolen land, lost to America. The indigenous people of the Hawaiian Islands do. Jurisdiction on Mauna Kea belongs to the native Hawaiian. In response to growing anger over the land issue, University of Hawaii officials approved a new master plan last Friday that may help reach a compromise between scientific exploration and preserving history.