2007, Volume 5, Number 1
Culture Clash
Culture Clashby Brandi De Mello
Hawai’i, it is more than just the 50th state. It is the symbol of what was once a thriving Nation, a government with complete independence. All this slowly began to change as Westerners, mainly missionaries, began integrating into its culture in 1820. Eventually, others would come, recognizing Hawai’i’s prime location as a valuable asset. Natives of Hawai’i welcomed them with open arms, naïve to what their real agenda was, total control of the Hawaiian Islands and its people.
The arrival of Captain James Cook should have been the first sign for Native Hawaiians to be more cautious of visitors. Captain Cook’s appearance around the time of the Native Hawaiians Makahiki season was definitely a case of mistaken identity. However, instead of being honest with the Native Hawaiians, Cook used their innocence to manipulate and take advantage of them. It wouldn’t end there. Missionaries began settling in Hawai’i, attempting to “save” Native Hawaiians and make them “civilized.” This brought about new rules and regulations marking some of the first changes in the Native Hawaiian culture.
Changes ranged from wearing clothes, to the introduction of a new language, English. The Native Hawaiians lack of the English language proved to be beneficial to “Big Businessmen” who sought to attain the land necessary to set up their plantations. These Businessmen then pressured King Kalakaua to sign a Reciprocity treaty with the United States, allowing them to sell their sugar cane tax-free. In 1887, descendants of missionaries forced the Native people to conform to the “Bayonet Constitution.” The details of the constitution stated that only male Hawaiians and Westerners (excluding Asians) were granted full voting rights if and only if they met their standards of having wealth and education. Of course, they knew that at this time Native Hawaiians, full and part, made up less than half of Hawai’i’s population and were not all well versed in the English language.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough. Soon, Westerners demanded complete control of the government. This led to the imprisoning of Queen Lili’uokalani in her own home, the shutting down of Native resistance, and the destruction of Hawaiian traditions. In the article “Kanaka Maoli Resistance to Annexation,” Noenoe Silva gives background of the events that occurred up until the complete annexation of Hawai’i. She quotes, “Before the trial, the queen had been forced to sign a statement abdicating her throne under threat that the rebels would be executed if she did not” (56). Silva tells the true story of what the Queen endured because of the unconditional love she had for her people. The Western men could care less about the Native Hawaiians; they were focused on one thing, control. At the end of Silva’s article, it summarizes the end of Hawai’i as a Nation. She quotes, “the Newlands Resolution was passed-it made Hawai’i a territory of the United States, an act that was illegal by both U.S. constitutional and international law” (65). The illegal takeover of the Hawaiian Kingdom is the main reason why Natives have built up animosity towards Westerners or Non- Natives. However, this is only a small fraction of the effects of Non-Native influence. Not only did Hawaiians lose their kingdom, they lost their identity.
The identity of Native Hawaiians is portrayed through their language. It was once spoken fluently among all Native Hawaiians, until foreigners banned them from speaking their native language in their own land. It was a scheme of the Non-Natives to keep Native Hawaiians quiet and powerless. David and Karen Gegeo recognize, “the foundation of a people’s identity and cultural authenticity is their culturally shared indigenous epistemology, embodied in and expressed through their heritage language.” From an anthropological perspective it is made clear that language is essential to every culture. The Hawaiian language may have been taken away, but it was never forgotten. Although oppressed, Native Hawaiians held on tight to their language, salvaging what they could to pass down through the generations. As a result, today a small amount of people still speak Hawaiian with the numbers rapidly increasing. Yet, Native Hawaiians are still outnumbered and overpowered by their foreign counterparts.
Many foreign groups, when deciding to move, were attracted to the image of “paradise,” thus transforming “paradise” into a “melting pot.” Having a “melting pot” in which the Natives were outnumbered resulted in a shift of power. Because there was so much foreign influence, the Westerners formed a hierarchy among the people in Hawai’i. This ultimately left Native Hawaiians at the bottom of the totem pole. In an essay written by Trask it states:
Given that Hawaiians are indigenous, that our government was overthrown, and that we are entitled, as a nation, to sovereignty, the argument that we should share power with non-Natives who benefit from the theft of our sovereignty is, simply, grotesque (3).
Trask expresses her anger towards the idea of a skewed hierarchy. She disagrees that Natives should adhere to the suggestion of sharing power with Non-Natives. A perfect example of the “power shift” is the high amount of Non-Natives in political seats. Trask affirms that, “As a majority of voters at midcentury, the Japanese and other Asians moved into the middle class and eventually into seats of power in the legislature and the governor’s house” (2). Here she brings attention to the foreign influence in our government. Many Native Hawaiians agree that Hawai’i is governed in a biased manner, granting favors to the Non-Natives. Today, Hawaiians are trying to educate themselves in the governing process of Hawai’i and making attempts to exercise their Native Rights.
The biggest issue among Native Hawaiians today, is the unfair distribution of Native lands and resources. These days, it is quite normal to find high skyscrapers, busy streets, and expensive homes on land that was once sacred. There are many beautiful beaches and ocean front properties that are being purchased by rich businessmen who have no respect for the Hawaiian culture. Land, which is a big part of the culture and a very important resource for Native-Hawaiians, has been deceivingly purchased by Non Natives. In their eyes, beaches serve only one purpose, “recreation”. However, for the Native Hawaiians it serves as a resource for food as some of the beaches are prime fishing grounds. For many people, fishing is the only way they obtain food, making it very important for beaches to be accessible. An article written by Ed Rampell, “Incident at Kea’au”, documented the story of various Hawaiian groups coming together to protest on private property for the access to one of the most beautiful beaches on the east side of the Big Island. Rampell writes:
Now, 150 years after King Kamehameha III proclaimed the Great Mahele, which allowed for the selling of Hawaiian land to non-Hawaiians, the Big Island trespassing case currently on appeal before the Hawai’i Supreme Court could result in another major reconsideration of land-access rights for Hawaiians.
In this short excerpt, Rampell acknowledges that, the reason land was put on the market for purchase by Non-Natives was the “Great Mahele.” The Great Mahele was a decree issued by the King allowing foreigners to buy property. Instead, they again took advantage of Native Hawaiian kindness and sought out the most valuable properties in Hawai’i. Now, many Native families are unable to afford and have access to property near a once widely used resource. While efforts to gain back rights have been a struggle, Native Hawaiians continue to fight.
In order for the Native Hawaiian people to have the upper-hand in the constant evolution of society, Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop established a school designed for the Native Hawaiian children. The school was created to provide a high quality education so Native Hawaiian children could gain an advantage over foreign policies. Kamehameha School is now one of the most prestigious schools in the state and has served as a wonderful asset for Native Hawaiians. As of recently, the government labeled her will as an act of discrimination against “non-natives.” Now, they’ve allowed “non-native” children to attend Kamehameha schools, stripping us of another right we once possessed.
Another very recent issue involved the removal of bones from old burial sites for the purpose of constructing more buildings. In the Hawaiian culture, bones, or “iwi”, are valued and represent the symbol of “mana” or power. In an article titled, “Native Burials: Human Rights and Sacred Bones” Ayau wrote:
Ancestral bones were guarded, respected, venerated, and even deified. It was believed that the ‘uhane (spirit) of a person hovered near na iwi. Desecration of na iwi resulted in an insult to the ‘uhane and trauma and harm to living descendants (1).
Ayau gives sufficient background on the significance carried in “na iwi”. He makes it quite clear that any disturbance to these bones would cause great distress to the Native people. Sadly, again to make a quick buck, Non-Natives chose to ignore the cultural practices of Native Hawaiians. Ayau also quoted, “the iwi of approximately 3,000 ancestral Native Hawaiians were systematically removed from the sand dunes of Mokapu Peninsula” (2). The Native Hawaiian people were upset and protested against the disturbance of their ancestral bones. Together they fought and used their knowledge to establish a law that protects many Native Hawaiian burial sites. As time continues Native Hawaiians are beginning to recognize and understand the unjust acts of Non-Natives.
To resolve the hurt inflicted by Non-Natives, the Native Hawaiian people have united together and devised several plans to regain their independence. The first plan is to have complete separation from the United States; this would ensure that they have the right to govern themselves without any interference by the U.S. government. Kamu’u and Keppeler write, “As a nation, it would be able to do what the State of Hawai’i could never do: place limitations on immigration. ‘We cannot continue a policy of unlimited foreign infiltration into Hawai’i. We are islands with finite land resources’” (296). Here they stress the importance of land resources and confirm that Hawai’i is, in fact, getting overpopulated by foreigners. This group is categorized as the “separists”; their hope is to regain independence and take back the power that was once lost. A second group is called “Nation-within-a-Nation”, and their desire is for Hawai’i to remain under the umbrella of the United States, but govern its own resources, primarily land. Kamu’u and Keppeler adequately state:
Hawaiians will generally continue to live, work, and worship as they do today. Jobs, social security, retirement, or pension from the United States or the State of Hawai’i will not be affected. The primary change is that Hawaiian lands and assets will be managed and controlled by laws passed by a Hawaiian legislature (299).
Both groups have one thing in common: to regain power over their land and its resources. The clash between the Natives and Non-Natives is due mainly to the unwillingness to learn and respect the Native Hawaiian culture.
The Native Hawaiian people have painfully endured the effects of an illegal annexation of their Hawaiian Kingdom. It is no question whether or not “Kanaka Maoli” deserve retribution for the invasion of the Non-Native lifestyle. Many might think that the overthrow is ancient history, and that Native Hawaiians should forgive and forget. However, the clash between Native Hawaiians and Non- Natives goes beyond the annexation of the Hawaiian Kingdom; it is the continuous neglect of the Native Hawaiian culture. To fight back, Hawaiians use their voice. As one it is faintly heard, but as a united body, they seek to reach, revive, and restore the culture of the Native Hawaiian people. Ua mau ke ea o ka ‘aina I ka pono (The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness).
WORKS CITED
Ayau, Edward H. “Native Burials: Human Rights and Sacred Bones.” Cultural Survival. 7 June 2001
Gegeo, Karen and David. “Authenticity and Identity: Lessons form Indigenous Language Education.” AEQ 1 Nov. 1999
Kamau;u, Mahealani and H.K. Bruss Keppler. “What might Sovereignty look like?” ed. Roth, Randell W. The Price of Paradise: Lucky We Live Hawai’i. Honolulu: Mutual Publishing, 1992 (295-300).
Rampell, Ed. “Incident at Kea’au” Honolulu Weekly 6-12 May 1998: 6.
Silva, Noenoe K. Kanaka Maoli Resistance to Annexation. Washington: U.S. National Archives, 1998.
Trask, Haunani-Kay. Settlers of Color and “immigrant” Hegemony: “Locals” in Hawai’i. Vol 26 (2000): 2.
This Paper was written for English 100