11-02-2019, 08:15 AM
One good thing about these protests is they have driven me to learn more about Hawaii's history and culture. In some cases, I have learned things even the protesters I've talked to were not familiar with, such as who Poli'ahu was or what Waikea did! (How one can consider the mountain sacred or themself a kia'i without knowing Poli'ahu or the Hawaiian origin story was quite revealing to me...)
Here's what I learned today:
Indentured servitude/slavery here had roots in the Hawaiian culture, and was practiced under the Hawaiian Kingdom legally until Hawaii became a US territory.
Before contact with the "west" Hawaii had a caste system with the lowest caste being kauwa. The kauwa were slaves to the ali'i and often used for human sacrifices. Even higher castes like maka'ainana were forced into labor by their masters, to cut down sandalwood trees for tribute, etc.
Kamehameha III was the first Hawaiian monarch to import indentured servants/slaves from China. They worked 6 x 10 hour days a week for $3 a month, when mainland field workers were making closer to $100 per month. The laws passed under the Hawaiian Kingdom (Hawaii Masters and Servants Act) allowed them to be physically punished, prevented from escape, have time added onto their servitude, forbidden from starting other businesses, etc. Even Queen Likiuokalani allowed this form of slavery to exist in her kingdom, until she was overthrown.
Even today the caste system persists, as the sovereignty movement establishes a constitution that excludes these former indentured servants from becoming citizens in their proposed kingdom. These immigrant families lived under the Hawaiian Kingdom and have called Hawaii their home for over 150 years, yet they are still deemed as outsiders and unworthy by their former masters.
Here's what I learned today:
Indentured servitude/slavery here had roots in the Hawaiian culture, and was practiced under the Hawaiian Kingdom legally until Hawaii became a US territory.
Before contact with the "west" Hawaii had a caste system with the lowest caste being kauwa. The kauwa were slaves to the ali'i and often used for human sacrifices. Even higher castes like maka'ainana were forced into labor by their masters, to cut down sandalwood trees for tribute, etc.
Kamehameha III was the first Hawaiian monarch to import indentured servants/slaves from China. They worked 6 x 10 hour days a week for $3 a month, when mainland field workers were making closer to $100 per month. The laws passed under the Hawaiian Kingdom (Hawaii Masters and Servants Act) allowed them to be physically punished, prevented from escape, have time added onto their servitude, forbidden from starting other businesses, etc. Even Queen Likiuokalani allowed this form of slavery to exist in her kingdom, until she was overthrown.
Even today the caste system persists, as the sovereignty movement establishes a constitution that excludes these former indentured servants from becoming citizens in their proposed kingdom. These immigrant families lived under the Hawaiian Kingdom and have called Hawaii their home for over 150 years, yet they are still deemed as outsiders and unworthy by their former masters.