racism in Kea`au and Pahoa schools

[Guest]

I was out and about yesterday and I met a young man who began pouring his heart out to me about how horrible the public schools are here for a (haole) kid from the mainland. He clearly wanted people to know, so I thought I would share it without sharing any details that would be identifying.

I know this topic is unpleasant. I wish there were no racism. I don't like reporting on racism. But here is someone telling me about how he was persecuted and has seen the race-based persecution here.

We recently had a topic posted by cakelady saying that because her son is doing well at Kea'au that the stories she heard were misinformation. So here is some more information from a kid who went through hell here.

I'm not too good about guessing ages, but I'd say he was either in intermediate or early years of high school. He started talking to me because I had my grandson with me, who is disabled, and who has blue eyes and blonde hair. He said that kids with special needs get regularly beaten up on at Kea'au, and he had been one to stand up for them -- and been ostracized for it.

He said that the local kids make every effort to beat up the white kids, particularly if you have blue eyes, he thinks because none of them have blue eyes. That they wait for you to get you alone and then beat you up.

He said when he and his family came over, his Mom thought Hawai'i was a beautiful friendly place and everyone told her it was OK for him to go to public school. So he found out the hard way what it's like. Now he goes to a charter school and really likes it (Hawaii Acacemy of Arts and Sciences or HAAS). He had nothing but praise for his new school.

He said if any school is worse than Kea`au it is Pahoa where they need two police officers on duty, and kids are still doing drugs and selling them where everyone can see. He had never been enrolled there so didn't discuss any personal violence, just the drug use/dealing in front of the school which I guess he had witnessed.

He was very concerned to hear that my grandson is in public school. So far it has been OK for him in Waikoloa. There have been some mean names from kids, like "freak" -- but the staff is wonderful and I think it is a pretty cool multicultural school. I love the idea of a multicultural school environment, and that the kids there study Hawaiian culture even if they moved there from the mainland. What upsets me is the idea of a school where minority children, any minority, are harassed and picked on, and subject to violence.

This young man started talking to me and it was like floodgates burst. He went on for maybe ten or fifteen minutes. I could see by his eyes and expression that he had experienced a lot of bad things that were traumatizing and staying with him even though he had gotten out and found a good school.

I am posting this so parents who are wanting to move over and put their kids in the Puna public schools will understand that this ugly stuff really does go on here. still, today. There is too much of the mindset that if you get picked on you must come with some mainland attitude. This kid wasn't like that at all He was clearly a very bright, sensitive teenager.

I met him as he was doing volunteer work on his Saturday. A good kid, who clearly grew up taught that we should all accept each other and our differences, only to get dropped into an environment where hate of people who are different is allowed to dominate the school dynamic.

He did have some harsh words for the background the bullies were coming from. He said there was a lot of domestic violence, a lot of kids whose parents had them when they were really young and not ready to raise families, and that the kids had a lot of anger in them because their lives are unhappy, their parents are unhappy, and their parents pass on the racism to their kids.

All of which I understand and it's not my wish to start dumping on people. My concern is that parents bring their kids over here in search of a better more natural life and don't budget in the cost of an alternative to the public schools.

[John S. Rabi]

So what's new Kathy? The kids still openly talk about the "Beat A Haole Day" even in the public schools in Kona.

Aloha,
John S. Rabi, GM,PB,ABR,CRB,CM,FHS
808.989.1314
http://www.JohnRabi.com
Typically Tropical Properties
"The Next Level of Service!"

[Greg]

Racism is inexcusable, but unfortunately is everywhere. I went to school in the west, midwest, and deep south (class of '67). Suprisingly, I was never in school with a black person until my southern experience(the last two years of high school). I wasn't exposed to much racism before the south, but that's understandable since the southern schools were the first to integrate. I think they did a good job, and have moved steadily forward since the turbulent sixties.

I think the problems here are more socio-economic than overtly racist. My blue eyed kids have been in the public schools from kindergarten on with no problems at all concerning race. It is much more difficult with late arrivals and I attribute this as much to localism as to racism.

I would suggest a charter school for new middle or highschoolers; or at least a trial period in public school, then a transfer if it doesn't work.

It also helps to throw a football sixty yards.[]

punatoons

[Greta]

I saw first hand every single day I taught in Keaau schools. I have taught in some very tough urban schools and Keaau was the worst place I ever taught. Heck, those kids are so hard on each other so they just step it up for the mainland kids.

[mdd7000]

I think this kid is off-base and has an axe to grind. I now have one in 9th and one in sixth in Pahoa schools. I wanted them to be in charter schools but could not get them in because they were already full - we moved here in June.
Both have made several friends both local and "white". My 9th grader is very street-smart and we talk about what goes on. He knows of one fight so far and it was between 2 locals. He does think the school is "easier" than what he expected his freshman classes to be like. It is too early to tell if he is right.
My 6th grader has already been given special attention - he would be a G&T (gifted and talented) student if they had a program. His teacher quickly noticed his abilities and has let me know that he is being given special projects and assignments.

[Devany]

I concur, it sounds like the kid has an axe to grind, though it may be based on his personal experiences, I don't think it is fair to say that anyone who is having positive experiences at those schools is in denial. Everyone has their own perspective.

I went to a high school in 1969-72 in S. CA that had regular race riots, bombings and visits from the Black Panthers. BFD. It was part of growing up in turbulent times for our whole country. It made me who I am today. I think it taught me tolerance and acceptance more than anything else. We had 5 armed cops and 10 proctors on campus by my Sr. Year. I graduated mid term because I could. I just got to go to college a semester early and went on with my life.

I think racism exists in many places and some kids are just targets for any kind of bullies. What you really have to look at is the parents and families that feed into those two high schools. A kid does not grow up as a racist on his own. Nor does a Bully just come out of the womb that way. They are trained by their parents and the surrounding communities. If the families that feed into those schools are raising racist bullies, they are probably the same. The neighborhoods reflect that kind of attitude and it is evidenced in the schools.

I have long felt that high school is a microcosm of life in that community and much like what you will face in the future as an adult in the same location. It is how you learn to deal with all kinds of situations. People who get along with others in high school, generally do the same in life. Trouble makers usually remain the same. Good students and those involved in positive programs usually rise to the top like cream in life.

I know lots of kids from Hilo High and they seem to be very happy, well adjusted, achieving, literate kids and many have "local" friends of multiple races.

Aloha au i Hawai`i,
devany

www.myhawaiianhome.blogspot.com
www.eastbaypotters.blogspot.com

[Bullwinkle]

http://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/arti...ocal03.txt

topical:

"The training was part of a settlement agreement from a December 2004 complaint to the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights that alleged several Caucasian students at Kealakehe Intermediate School had been subjected to repeated harassment because of race or national origin and that the district did not promptly and effectively address the problem.

Teachers, staff -- including bus drivers -- and students at Kealakehe Elementary, Intermediate and High schools, and Kahakai and Holualoa elementary schools were required to participate in the training. The teachers participated in a four-hour session, while students had a two-hour block.

"The goal was to provide uniform awareness and understanding of the severity of the issues of bullying in our schools and on our buses," said West Hawaii Complex Area Superintendent Art Souza."

[Aaron S]

When I went to public school here it was really difficult.I was teased mercilessly because I am tall and haole. It took me a long time to heal from the pain of this harassment (I graduated high school in 1994). Thus anyone who says racism doesn't exist in our schools here is living in denial !

[Devany]

As sad as it is true Aaron, the school is a mirror of the community in which you lived. Your parents chose to raise you there, you obviously had no say in that. Having said that, I think you probably learned some lessons in tolerance and acceptance from your school days. The people who make fun of others are doing it because they have low self esteem and that comes from ignorant parents.

We cannot escape racism, it is everywhere in our world. But we can work to eradicate it by eliminating in our own lives and not carrying around bitterness about what you experienced. Kids are at a tender age where the slightest things can effect their self esteem. Being teased does just that and believe me merciless teasing exists at all schools. Now you can raise children who are kinder and gentler and eventually make a difference because of the many lessons you learned in school.

Kathy, I am delighted to hear that your grandson is in a place where he is able to bloom and now has a positive experience. The disabled have so many more battles to fight than many kids. They deserve an upper hand, or at least a nurturing environment. Of course every student deserves that, but I think you know what I mean. You are right, that there are differences in schools. This is one reason people moving need to really put their kids first in their decision. Like I said, the school mirrors the community in many ways. Irresponsible parents are at fault, the "bad" kids are just a reflection of the way they are raised.

Regarding the cream... I meant people who "get over it" and work hard at something, anything scholastics, art, music,computer science,writing, sports. I believe in EVERY child there is "cream". It is the whiners and and bullies who do not ever get past their pity parties and attitudes to be what they can be. Blaming others on your own misfortune is really not at all a winning attitude. Many people have had far worse lives than most Hawaiian kids and still rose above their circumstances... to the top... Oprah is a prime example, but there are thousands of people that have made terrific lives even though they faced adversity in their youth.

And anyone that can remember back to their teen years knows that all emotions are simmering beneath the surface for kids that age. It is so easy to be hurt. Remember losing your first love? God, some of my friends thought they were going to die from the pain. They didn't. Life is full of lessons. Some are not easy to go through and a few people never get beyond their high school mentality.

Aloha au i Hawai`i,
devany

www.myhawaiianhome.blogspot.com
www.eastbaypotters.blogspot.com

[Greta]

My intention was to point out that I have worked with a mix of minorities in urban, gang-infested schools who held an overall greater respect for life than the kids in Puna schools.

An example.
http://www.hawaiireporter.com/story.aspx...712a73408c


Saying that racism exists everywhere and ultimately it builds character does not nullify the ugliness that occurs every single day in Puna schools (Hilo is a different world).

We know where it comes from.

Many children are lost in the cracks before they ever even get a chance to float to the top. We don't have the data on how far a kid would have come if he wasn't beaten to a pulp with brass knuckles while the other kids made a circle to prolong administration from stepping in. That's pretty hard to "get over."

Keaau library is on the public middle school campus. Take a little field trip there for empirical evidence when the kids are outside before school or during recess.