I am often at a loss to explain the Hawaiian situation to outsiders. Many of them simply cannot seem to grasp the intricacies of how race and identity fit into a place like Hawaii, especially when they try to view Hawaii as merely another state in the United States, adapting the purview of privileged people living at the top of society in a land that was long ago colonized and had its original people scattered to the hinterlands where they may be forgotten so those whom inherited the land may live with a clear conscience. In truth I am over simplifying, but in fact Hawaii is not like any other state. Hawaii is/was a nation of people. What is now a state was once a free, sovereign kingdom that was creating a niche of power for itself in the Pacific when its rulers were illegally overthrown by a cabal of rich foreigners even before it was illegally annexed to the US by a rogue military officer's coup d'etat. I must digress, as I'm getting off topic.
A common occurrence frequently take place when people find out that my ex-wife was born and raised in Hawaii:
"Oh, is she Hawaiian?" they ask.
"No," I reply in short, deadpan brevity.
"But, she was born in Hawaii?"
"Yup."
"So, she is Hawaiian."
"Nope."
This is the point where I start getting blank stares from heads cocked with confusion.
"But people from Hawaii are Hawaiian," they start to stammer a bit with uncertainty.
"No," I reply, "HAWAIIANS are Hawaiian."
*Blank stares and lack of comprehension*
"Hawaiian is an ethnicity..." and this is where people's eyes start to gloss over, "...so people born in Hawaii aren't necessarily "Hawaiians" unless they're actually Hawaiian," and this is the point where they begin to drool à la Homer Simpson.
"...ok, so she's not Hawaiian. What is she?"
"Well, she's mostly X and Y."
"Are her parents from Hawaii?"
"No. They're from N and F mostly, but they've lived in Hawaii for almost 40 years."
"And you've lived there for about 7 years. Well, you guys are all locals anyway."
"Um no, "local" is also an ethnic designation in Hawaii..."
"Wha..." heads now begin to implode.
"Are Hawaiians local?"
"Sort of, but it's really complicated."
"Well, if someone is born in Hawaii they're Hawaiian."
"NO!" at this point I strangle the person or walk away shaking my head.
Understanding race and identity in Hawaii is complicated and confusing, but you can at least get a firm grasp on it if you really try. People like me are referred to as kama'aina. I don't know what the proper term for someone born in Hawaii who is not Hawaiian and no one has been able to give me a reasonable answer for that. However, those issues are vastly less important than understanding what a Hawaiian is. In Fall 2011 I took a class with Daviana McGregor called "The Hawaiians" at the University of Hawaii and I have reprinted the following technical definitions so that others may gain a slight bit of clarity.
HAWAIIAN -
NATIVE HAWAIIAN: In 1921, the U.S. Congress created the Hawaiian Homes Commission and defined the "native Hawaiians" who can apply for leases to the lands which it administers as: "Any descendant of not less than one-half part of the blood of the races inhabiting the Hawaiian islands previous to 1778." The Admissions Act defined the beneficiaries of the ceded public lands trust as "native Hawaiians as defined in the Hawaiian Homes Commission act, 1920." Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, Pub. L. No. 67-34, 42 stat. 108
HAWAIIAN: The Native American Programs Act, passed by Congress in 1974 defined Hawaiian as "Anyone, any of whose ancestors lived in the area known today as the Hawaiian Islands, prior to 1778." This is basically the definition used by Bishop Estate, Alu LIke, and Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center in defining their beneficiaries. The Naive American Programs Act of 1974, Pub. L. No. 93-644 § 801, 88 Stat. 2291
NATIVE HAWAIIAN: In November 1993, Public Law 103-150, The Apology Law, defined "Native Hawaiian" as "any individual who is a descendent of the aboriginal people who, prior to 1778, occupied and exercised sovereignty in the area that now constitutes the State of Hawai'i." Pub. L. No. 103-150, 107 Stat. 1510.
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES -
The Unites Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples adopted September 7, 2007, recognizes the rights of all indigenous peoples, including native Hawaiians. The United Nations considered for adoption the Draft Declaration of the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Population at its Eleventh Session in 1993. The Cobo Report, "Study of the Problem of Discrimination Against Indigenous Populations," was completed for the United Nations in 1987, after an eleven year study of indigenous populations in 37 different countries throughout the world. It stated the following definition of indigenous populations:
| Indigenous communities, peoples, and nations are those which, having a historical continuity with preinvasion and pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories, consider themselves distinct from other sectors of the societies now prevailing in those territories, or parts of them. Thy form at present non-dominant sectors of society and are determined to preserve, develop, and transmit to future generations their ancestral territories, and their ethnic identity, as the basis of their continued existence as peoples, in accordance with their own cultural patterns, social institutions, and legal systems. |
The U.S. Congress has recognized the sovereignty of over 550 American Indian, Eskimo, and Aleut nations, tribes, and peoples up to 1999. There are more than 2 million Native Americans and Alaska Natives, 20 percent of whom live on 314 reservations. Native Hawaiins are not yet formally recognized as a sovereign nation.
| Noha ana ke akua I ka nāhelehele I ‘ālai ‘ia e ka k ī ’ohu’ohu e ka ua koko O nā kino malua i ka lani malu e hoe E ho’oulu mai ana o Laka E kona kahu O mākou noa |
The god/deity dwells in the wilderness/forest hidden away by the mists and the low-lying (red) rainbow T he entities who offer protection in the sacred heavens Increase the presence of Laka and her protectors/guardians We are free |
* The following material was produced by Daviana McGregor for her ES221 Hawaiians class at the University of Hawaii. It was reproduced for educational purposes without permission.
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