Re: sending my "haole" children to Hawaii's schools
Posted by joe on 1/22/04
I think that some tend to regard "haole" as a pretty derisive racial label like the n-word or something, but it is much more mild than that. Though I am haole, I only perceived it as negative in the rare cases when insulting adjectives were placed in front of the term. Phrases like "stink haole, dumb haole, d%&n haole, or (certainly the worst one) f#$%ing haole" are what I mean, or even "haole" said with a bit of "stink eye" would, of course" be derisive and racist. I even remember the phrase "haole crab" from middle school, though I have no idea what that means. I always took the term haole as a label like white, black, asian, or Arab. I don't think that we haoles should be offended by it, really.
Prejudice towards mainlanders is certainly present in Hawaii. Anglo- centric Mainlanders have been known to be arrogant and condescending toward local language and the way of life in the islands. Many seem to convey discontentment about living on an island away from home: they complain about the prices, the casual style, the traffic, and they even disrespect the land by calling it a "rock." Anyone who knows about the "aina" would understand why Hawaiians would find that offensive. It isn't fair to disparage all mainlanders because of the ones who are guilty of the above, but it does happen. Mainlanders who move to Hawaii should be a lot more sensitive to locals. Pidgen is not ignorant, the island and the culture are beautiful, being late is not a mortal sin, and haoles who have the opportunity to experience living in Hawaii should take every opportunity to let their local students, friends, and neighbors know that they respect and love these islands. They should enjoy the music, compliment the food, respect the land, and not think that a person who rides home on the bus to a tiny $300k crackerbox house is beneath them. Then, they will experience far less bashing as haoles.
On 1/20/04, Benjamin B. wrote: > Joanne, > > Why risk your childrens' safety? > > It is obvious from reading the posts that there are some > pockets of resentment toward caucasians, particularly those > from the mainland. The prejudice towards whites here is not > ubiquitous, nor does it always lead to violence, but it is > present and tangible. My wife recently attended a > conference for early childhood education at which a fellow > EDUCATOR referred to her as a haole. The owner of the > company I worked for was beaten with a pipe and left for > dead in a racially motivated crime. He spent several weeks > in a coma. My local friends from work show obvious > embarassment when "caught" fishing with me by their local > friends. I have been lied to and stolen from by employees > and people I thought were my friends. There was even one > occasion when the person standing in line behind me was told > by the cashier to cut in line in front of me. > > An adult in today's world is equipped to deal with > discrimination. Children learn those lessons only with > great difficulty. Add that to the stress of moving, and > it's just not worth putting your kid through. > > --Ben >
