Disrupting the ‘melting pot’: racial discourse in Hawai'i and the naturalization of haole

Abstract

This article analyses two dominant discourses of racial politics in Hawai'i and the work they do naturalizing haole (white people or whiteness in Hawai'i) in the islands. The first is the well-worn discourse of racial harmony representing Hawai'i as an idyllic racial paradise with no conflict or inequality. Frequently contrasting the islands with the ‘racist mainland’, this discourse circulates among many communities and is widely referenced. There is also a competing discourse of discrimination against non-locals which contends that haoles and non-local people of colour are disrespected and treated unfairly in Hawai'i. As negative referents for each other, these discourses work to reinforce one another and are historically linked. I suggest that the question of racial politics be reframed towards consideration of the processes of racialization themselves – towards a new way of thinking about racial politics in Hawai'i that breaks free of the not racist/racist dyad.

Keywords:

• Hawai'i
• race
• whiteness
• colonization
• racial discourse
• discrimination

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my Ethnic and Racial Studies reviewers, in particular Paul Spickard, for their helpful suggestions and comments. Thanks also to France Wirddance Twine for encouraging my submission to ERS. The research for this article was supported by fellowships at the Women's Studies programmes at the University of California Santa Barbara and the University of Limerick, Ireland. Early drafts of this article benefited from the generous readings of Kathy Ferguson, Phyllis Turnbull, Noenoe Silva, Jon Goldberg-Hiller and David Stannard. My mother, Georgia Acevedo, served as research assistant and clipping service on the ground on O'ahu. Finally, for her constant support and editorial assistance, I am eternally grateful to my partner, Dorrie Mazzone.

Notes

1. For detail on the political economy during this period, see Kent (1983). For more on colonization through politics and the law, see Osorio (2002) and Merry (2000).

2. For a detailed history of the plantation systems in Hawai'i, see Takaki (1983).

3. The continental US is often referred to in Hawai'i as the ‘mainland’, much to the consternation of Hawaiian nationalists who argue that use of the term perpetuates the notion of the islands as marginal or peripheral.

4. Over the past several years a wave of lawsuits has been filed challenging native Hawaiian rights and entitlements on the ground that they constitute unfair racial discrimination. The most significant of these is the 2000 Supreme Court decision in Rice v. Cayetano (Kauanui 2002).

5. Anecdotal evidence for this comes from my experience writing my dissertation on the continent. Unless I was explicit about my politics, white people frequently heard my topic, ‘haoles in Hawai'i’, as a sign of racial allegiance. More than once I had someone launch into a story about some ‘anti-haole’ incident he/she, a friend or a family member experienced while on vacation in the islands.

6. Specifically, some legislators argued against a hate crimes bill because they feared the alleged practice of ‘kill haole day’ would open the state to lawsuits if such a bill passed.

7. For a study of how these elements are central to the local, see Kubo (1997).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Judy Rohrer

JUDY ROHRER is an affiliated research scholar at the Women's Studies Program, University of California Santa Barbara