08-24-2015, 04:37 PM
quote:
Originally posted by shockwave rider
quote:
Originally posted by PunaMauka2
Shockwave rider, ironically you seem to be relying on an awful lot of stereotypes in your reasoning there yourself.
Just curious, what is your definition of "the Hawaiians"? ...in the contemporary sense.
Don't know what stereotypes you are referring to, I mostly posited a hypothetical scenario. I have a lot of experience working with disenfranchised populations, here and on the mainland, including organizing housing and job training options for Native Americans who were trying to break out of the cycle of poverty, addiction, and homelessness. In doing that work I have participated in trainings and seminars taught by Native American educators from the United States and other educators from former colonies in Africa and the Americas, and the scholarly research on education and conquered peoples is pretty consistent, I didn't just "make stuff up" like some here do. I have also had my contemporaries, and even younger, both Hawaiian and Native American, tell me of experiencing very real bias and discrimination in the public school systems; the days of telling students they are just a "stupid Hawaiian" or "stupid Indian" are not in the distant past, it still happens to this day, and I know people whose children have had it happen to them.
To me, Hawaiians are descendants of the people who were living in Hawaii prior to the arrival of Captain Cook. Descendants of everyone who came later are the children and grandchildren of immigrants to Hawaii, and we will never be Hawaiians, although we can be residents of Hawaii. I could live here for decades more, and still I will never be Hawaiian, and I certainly would never take it upon myself to tell "Hawaiians" what they should do, feel, or think about issues of deep concern to them.
I think everyone should take care of the old, the young, and those who can't take care of themselves, but I do not think I have the right to tell the descendants of the people who were here before Captain Cook stumbled across Hawaii in search of the NW Passage what issues should be important to them, or what they should do about it.
edited to add: I just checked, and I did not use the phrase "the Hawaiians" just like I would not refer to "the blacks" or "brown people" as an earlier poster did. When that little 3 letter word gets stuck in front of an identifier it changes the meaning, and acquires some seriously racist overtones. That was your language, not mine.
bold by me...so, what are you saying?