What Are You?

The complexity and evolution of the mixed races of Hawai‘i has caused much discourse – in academic papers as well as in Hawai‘i’s literature. In other countries and especially mainland USA, individuals of mixed race experience tumultuous feelings of belonging, not being wholly accepted by the racial groups into which they are born (Reed 333). Persons of mixed race in Hawai‘i have predominantly experienced the opposite as a majority of the population can boast two or more ethnicities in their family line (328). Juliet S. Kono’s poem, “Hybrid,” touches on the evolvement of this phenomenon by describing the pure sugarcane fields which are soon replaced by hybrid crop and then personified by a hapa woman. The poem is set in the plantation days when the blend of races had only recently begun therefore, the line “You belong. You do not belong” (Kono 199) shows the teetering of acceptance she feels from her people. In our modern world of Hawai‘i, however, hapa -- a mix of ethnicities involving Hawaiian or Asian persons -- is the norm and one that raises no eyebrows or suspicious looks (Reed 333). The progress of such acceptance is seen in the hapas today and in recent literature of Hawai‘i.

Growing up in Hawai‘i, a common question everyone asks is, “What are you?” meaning what ethnicity (or ethnicities) make up one’s blood? The question is as expected as “What high you school you went?” Almost everyone you meet is a mix of ethnicities. Hapa, in English, means “half.” However, because the quantum of blood in most Hawaiians is less than half, hapa has come to mean “Hawaiian and something other” or “Asian and something other” (Bernstein & De la cruz 723). When someone is hapa, they could be Hawaiian-Japanese, Japanese-Haole, Hawaiian-Chinese, Hawaiian-Haole, or Hawaiian mixed with multiple ethnicities. I grew up with 20 first cousins – all of whom possessed various ethnicities, Filipino, Portuguese, Japanese, Caucasian, but because of our grandparents, we were all Hawaiian. As the hapa woman in "Hybrid", can we all accept that we belong yet do not belong? Is there a conflict of identity because of our mixed races? Or perhaps we accept the amalgamation of nationalities because it is now the norm instead of the exception? This unique blend of races is due to Hawai‘i’s historical plantation days and, for locals, mixed ethnicities are not only accepted but expected. It is in this environment that the question of “What are you?” merely connotes a friendly inquiry of identity rather than a gauge of status.

I am a mixture of Hawaiian, German, and Japanese. It is in my experience, however, that being Hawaiian and Japanese have proved most beneficial for living in Hawai‘i, perhaps because of the common struggles these races experienced under the Caucasians and the fact that Caucasians are in the minority (Reed 328). Growing up and better understanding the fragility of the Hawaiian people and their perpetuation, I attempt to connect more with my Hawaiian roots and emphasize my Hawaiian side when asked, “What are you?” Since the Hawaiian renaissance of the 1970s, this has been a common attitude of most hapa haoles -- to highlight their Hawaiian-ness to connect further with fading Hawaiian blood (Ledward 55). To be Hawaiian is now a source of pride. Because pure Hawaiians are rare, part-Hawaiian is accepted, encouraged, and promoted. Yet, the other races that make us up are still a big part of who we are.

Not only is part-Hawaiian accepted but part-Japanese, part-Chinese, part-Portuguese, too. These are other races whose blended blood is common to Hawai‘i’s locals. The literature of Hawai‘i shows the progression and struggle to acceptance. In “Oranges are Lucky,” the change in perception towards mixed races is evident when Debbie, a young Chinese woman, brings her new Japanese boyfriend to her grandmother’s birthday dinner. When Grandfather was still alive, the separation between races was adamant -- Japanese boys were not good for Chinese girls. Yet, in the subsequent generations, and with the passing of Grandfather, the acceptance of different races (which frequently leads to a mix of races) is more commonly accepted and pursued. Ah Po, the grandmother and main character, shows this when she tells the Japanese boyfriend, “You nicee Japanee boy… you take care of my grandchild. You be nice husband to her…” (Lum 85).

Some Hawai‘i literature shows mixed marriages or relationships as negatively viewed. In Shark Dialogues, it was an embarrassment for Pono when her daughters married outside of the Hawaiian race, even though Pono herself was not pure Hawaiian (Davenport 43). The mix of blood haunted Pono, her daughters and granddaughters. During Pono’s time, there would have been resistance to interracial relations but by the time of Pono’s granddaughters, it was a more accepted practice of intermarriage/interrelations with other races. The vehemence with which the granddaughters eschew towards their interracial affairs seems inconsistent with the signs of the times and is one among many inaccurate portrayals of Hawai‘i given by Shark Dialogues.

As mentioned before, Juliet Kono’s “Hybrid” poem describes the arrival of hapa-haoles or “hybrids” commenting that they are “Juicier, taller, creamier with less fiber, but strong” (Kono 198). “Hybrid” views the mix of race to be a thing of beauty yet mysterious and lacking in common ancestry. In my own travels around the world, I have found the latter to be true -- being Hawaiian, Japanese, and German, I am often confused for Spanish, Moroccan, or Brazilian. When people discover the diversity of my blend of races, it confuses them and I am asked which culture I am most familiar with. To my pride, I say Hawaiian as that is where my home is and where my values lie. Even so, I realize the composition of all my races is unique but I embrace its uncommon blend. Contrary to the “Hybrid” poem, I have never experienced the feeling of not belonging. Three generations ago, I may not have said such a thing but in my lineage, my parents and grandparents are all hapa and therefore, they embrace their hapa offspring. I attribute this to the commonality of “hybrid” races - a phenomenon nurtured in an inclusive environment that is singular to Hawai‘i because of its immigration history.

In other areas of the world, mixed raced peoples may have difficulty in identifying what group they belong to. In Hawai‘i, however, it is such a common practice that it is accepted and expected. Because many locals are of multiple ethnicities, racial barriers are significantly broken down and people of Hawaiʻi are able to move past the racial issues that others are hung up on. There are still instances of racial bigotry in Hawai‘i as there will be in any area of the world but it is difficult to hate and shun something that you are, which is why so many locals accept and embrace hapa-ness.

Works Cited

Bernstein, Mary & Marcie De La Cruz. ““What Are You?”: Explaining Identity as a Goal of the Multiracial Hapa Movement.” Social Problems 56. 2009: 722-745. Web. 1 March 2015.

Davenport, Kiana. Shark Dialogues. New York: Penguin Books, 1994. Print.

Kono, Juliet S. “Hybrid.” Island Fire: An Anthology of Literature from Hawai‘i. Ed. Cheryl Harstad and James Harstad. Honolulu: Unversity of Hawai‘i Press., 2002. 198-199. Print.

Ledward, Brandon. Inseparably Hapa: Making and Unmaking a Hawaiian Monolith. Diss. University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, 2007. Print.

Lum, Darrel H.Y. “Oranges Are Lucky.” Island Fire: An Anthology of Literature from Hawai‘i. Ed. Cheryl Harstad and James Harstad. Honolulu: Unversity of Hawai‘i Press, 2002. 81-99. Print.

Reed, Gay G. Fastening and Unfastening Identities: negotiating identity in Hawai‘i. Diss. University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, 2001. Print.