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  • Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

    This story in today's Maui News kind of freaked me out, although I suppose in the back of my head I always knew it was true: the percentage of adult residents who were not born on Maui or in Hawai'i has now reached 37%.

    "... A few years ago, Maui: the Valley Isle became Maui: the Magic Isle.

    And now it seems the slogan could be changed to Maui: the Mainland Isle.

    The number of Maui adults raised in the islands has dropped from 56 percent to 43 percent since 1988, while the population of Mainland transplants to Maui has leaped from 27 percent to more than 37 percent in the same time frame, an SMS study has found. Most newcomers to Hawaii are most likely to move to Maui, the report also concluded.

    “Actually, those numbers don’t surprise me,” said Gladys Baisa, the recently retired executive director of Maui Economic Opportunity Inc., who grew up in Paia’s Skill Village and has noticed the dramatic changes to the place she calls home. “It just verifies what we’re seeing. When I go to Foodland in Pukalani now, I might know one or two people besides the staff. In the old days, when you went to the market you knew everyone.”

    The demographics have gone in the same direction around the state, but not as sharply as on Maui. In 1998, SMS showed that 59 percent of residents statewide said they had been born in Hawaii. That number in the most recent survey dropped to 52 percent, said Hersh Singer, chairman of SMS. That’s still nearly 10 percent more than remain on Maui.

    “These people (transplants) are now becoming almost a majority,” Singer told The Maui News. “We are getting influenced more by the other states.”

    Those newcomers are also more likely to value having fun over having friends and family, the study showed.

    About 20 percent of Maui’s population was born in another country, up 3 percent since 1988.

    According to Census Bureau data, the population of Maui island grew from 91,361 in 1990 to 117,644 in 2000, while the county population grew from 100,504 to 128,241. While there are no estimates for Maui island since then, the Census Bureau estimates that Maui County’s population increased by another 10,000 people by 2004 to 138,347.

    The trend toward a more Mainland Maui has increased in the last six years, when newcomers to the state have jumped by 5 percent each year. The previous 13 years, the state saw an average annual increase of 2 percent of new residents. Because those transplants prefer Maui more than any other island, according to the study, they’ve had a greater impact here.

    But it’s not just newcomers pouring into the islands that has tipped the scales. The exodus of lifelong residents who no longer can afford to live in the land of their birth has contributed, too...."

    It's no wonder whenever I go to a local hangout that I see more Caucasian faces than local ones...sad, eh? It's kind of what's happened up here too...it's rare to meet a person who can say s/he was born in this state.

    Hold on to whatever is left of "local", because pretty soon it will only exist in people's memories or in the Bishop Museum.

    Miulang
    "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

  • #2
    Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

    Originally posted by Miulang
    It's no wonder whenever I go to a local hangout that I see more Caucasian faces than local ones...sad, eh?
    What's sad is that the blatant racism in this comment is not just tolerated here, but encouraged.

    Also so very sad is the use of the term "local" to obscure the fact that most of the people who make these comments aren't Hawaiian, but Americans of Asian ancestry who think being "Asian" makes them morally, racially and ethnically superior.

    Whatever your "race" is, whatever accident of genes and transcontinental or oceanic migration resulted in your physical appearance, I do not know or care.

    I am not welcome here, you and others have made that clear. I have been the victim of racial violence on my own property, attacked by a gang of so-called "local" (Asian ancestry) youths who screamed racial slurs as they assaulted me for the crime of standing in my front yard after telling a drug dealer to get out of neighborhood. The police, when they arrived, did nothing beyond suggesting that I might go to jail if I filed a complaint. The reasoning was not explained, but I knew. The police officers had Asian ancestors. I suppose if I hung a sign around my neck declaring my Native American ancestry, I wouldn't have to worry about that kind of thing. But I dislike having to play that card. In an enlightened community, that wouldn't be necessary.

    Tonight, as I read the first post in this thread, I again am reminded of where violence comes from. It comes from the ignorance and seething, blind, senseless hatred of people around me, my "ohana" (as some call it) on Hawaii Threads, and those who tolerate them.

    Tonight, at this moment, I choose again to walk away.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

      You know Miulang, I don't have the statistics at my fingertips today but I seem to recall that there was a time, oh, back in the 1920s or so, when the not-born-here population of Hawai'i was pretty darn large too. You know all those outsiders, who were irreversibly changing the fabric of Hawaiian society? They settled in and became our grandparents. So don't throw stones.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

        Chill, Maddie. I was merely making an observation, not advocating violence or threats against haoles. There are good and bad people of every color. The good people of Maui try to get along with everybody, but sometimes when malihini first arrive, they immediately want to change things to suit themselves. That's why there was all that pilikia on Moloka'i when McAfee tried to sell his property. That's why Americans as a whole have such a bad rep abroad as tourists. There are also a lot of malihini who move to the islands and actually try to blend in with the prevailing culture; those are the ones who succeed. The ones who come in like bulls in a china shop are the ones who end up being bitter about their lives in Hawai'i.

        I certainly don't agree that a race should be singled out because of skin color, but you know, haoles ARE the minority in Hawai'i, so they are just experiencing what Asians and other nonwhite folks experience when they are in a Caucasian dominated society. It hurts and ain't very pretty, but unfortunately, I think it's also human nature. Look at what happened to Japanese American citizens during WWII on the Mainland. They were citizens, but because they looked like the enemy, they were sent away to internment camps. They lost everything...all they could take with them was whatever they could carry or wear. Can you imagine being taken away from all that you have ever known just because of your skin color??? The Japanese Americans (Nisei) wanted so much to prove their loyalty to the US that they signed up in droves to form what became the 442nd (which still exists today) that was comprised of katonks (internees) and locals from Hawai'i. That Battalion ended up being the most highly decorated in the war.

        Rather than beat up on each other, I wish there was a way to make people understand that the differences between the ethnicities need not be a wall, but appreciating each other's cultures and having a healthy respect for the way others do things (and not trying to change them) is the best way to ensure we don't blow ourselves up.

        Miulang

        P.S. by "local", I mean supporting the small mom and pop stores not the mainland chains like WalMart in Hawaii, or eating foods grown in Hawai'i...not necessarily only that which is kanaka maoli. Hawai'i has a very rich multicultral mix; it would be a shame for any of that to go away.
        P.P.S. Somebody speculated recently that one of the reasons why Maui has so little military activity going on is because it does have the largest percentage of non-locals residing there.
        Last edited by Miulang; January 13, 2006, 08:19 AM.
        "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

          Originally posted by Glen Miyashiro
          You know Miulang, I don't have the statistics at my fingertips today but I seem to recall that there was a time, oh, back in the 1920s or so, when the not-born-here population of Hawai'i was pretty darn large too. You know all those outsiders, who were irreversibly changing the fabric of Hawaiian society? They settled in and became our grandparents. So don't throw stones.
          You can't change what happened in the past, Glen. You can only learn from it and try not to repeat history.

          Miulang
          "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

            Miulang,
            How many Microsofties are born and raised in Washington?

            Americans are the most mobile people on the planet, I remember reading somewhere. I don't find it all that surprising that Maui is a place people from other parts of the country (or world) want to live.
            http://www.linkmeister.com/wordpress/

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

              Originally posted by Linkmeister
              Miulang,
              How many Microsofties are born and raised in Washington?

              Americans are the most mobile people on the planet, I remember reading somewhere. I don't find it all that surprising that Maui is a place people from other parts of the country (or world) want to live.
              Better question, Link, is how many Microsofties are American citizens! Since Squishy took away all the perks, not many locals here in Seattle are rushing for those jobs (and they still work you to death). Rumor has it that MS would rather hire Canadians and East Indian nationals than Americans because they are willing to work for less and could care less about perks like stock options.

              Miulang

              P.S. Washington is also a state of immigrants. I haven't found too many native-born Washingtonians in the companies I've worked in (mostly healthcare).
              Last edited by Miulang; January 13, 2006, 08:59 AM.
              "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

                There is at least one positive thing about the rapid influx of nonlocal people on Maui: it's causing a hue and cry about the access to hospitals and the quality of healthcare on that island. So if by having the expectations of the people of Maui with regard to access to decent healthcare changed by the demands of the malihini, then that would be a good thing for all the residents of Maui. It's sad now that people have to fly to Honolulu for a lot of specialty services. The population of Maui is getting to the point where those services should be profitable for the doctors to have offices on Maui.

                Miulang
                "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

                  Originally posted by Miulang
                  You can't change what happened in the past, Glen. You can only learn from it and try not to repeat history.

                  Miulang
                  Are you inclined to let the newcomers make thier "History" here too? Miulang, I'm sure if you give them a chance, you can "learn" from the newcomers too.
                  The Konaside of the Big Island has a lot of newcomers too. They bring business(Costco, K-mart , WAlmart) to West Hawaii and thier voices in the community brought change(swim stadiums, soccer grounds,and more parks)to the quiet Kona I visted as a child. It's sad to see the traffic and crowds, but sometimes I wish the Hilo side would have more of the Mainland businesses Maui and Kona have. 100 miles is a long way to travel.
                  Last edited by alohabear; January 13, 2006, 09:45 AM.
                  Listen to KEITH AND THE GIRLsigpic

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                  • #10
                    Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

                    I'm a native-born Washingtonian and I am more and more perplexed by the number of Non-Caucasian faces I see at the local hangout.....

                    .......

                    Couldn't keep a straight face anymore......

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

                      Originally posted by alohabear
                      Are you inclined to let the newcomers make thier "History" here too? Miulang, I'm sure if you give them a chance, you can "learn" from the newcomers too.
                      The Konaside of the Big Island has a lot of newcomers too. They bring business(Costco, K-mart , WAlmart) to West Hawaii and thier voices in the community brought change to the quiet Kona I visted as a child. It's sad to see the traffic and crowds, but sometimes I wish the Hilo side would have more of the Mainland businesses Maui and Kona have. 100 miles is a long way to travel.
                      Sure, newcomers can make their own history. It's when they try to change the current history without regard to the legacy of the past that creates the problem. The akamai ones sit back and become part of the community before they try to change things. Why is having mainland chain stores a plus? Just because your expectation has been raised either by 1) having had access to those things if you lived on the mainland or 2) by the blatant advertising you see on TV.

                      I can remember Kress Store and how it wasn't open on Sundays; Friday night it stayed open until 8 or so so that's when the family did their shopping. We knew that if we ran out of something, we'd just have to wait until the store was open the next business day. Did the world come crashing down around us? No. Maybe we were more laid back then because we knew rushing wouldn 't get us anywhere.

                      It's because of our society's need to have everything immediately that people think they need access 24x7 or that they have to have what everybody else has. It's also the reason why everybody's so stressed and crabby all the time. There was a story in last week's Time Magazine about the pitfalls of multitasking. People think they are more productive by doing more than one thing at a time, when studies have shown that they are less productive and less accurate doing things this way. Maybe society won't change, but I can decide to do things differently for myself.

                      Miulang
                      "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

                        Originally posted by Lalalinder
                        I'm a native-born Washingtonian and I am more and more perplexed by the number of Non-Caucasian faces I see at the local hangout.....

                        .......

                        Couldn't keep a straight face anymore......
                        ROFL! You should be sent to the Burke Museum and revered and protected as an endangered species! Have you noticed the number of Hawaiian fast food restaurants that have cropped up in the Seattle area within the last few years?

                        Miulang
                        "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

                          Originally posted by Miulang
                          ROFL! You should be sent to the Burke Museum and revered and protected as an endangered species! Have you noticed the number of Hawaiian fast food restaurants that have cropped up in the Seattle area within the last few years?

                          Miulang
                          That is funny!

                          I am glad to report that a restaurant just opened up in my neighborhood and they have pretty good kalua pig and so-so mac salad. I want to try the one in Georgetown too, just haven't ventured over there yet. Have you been there?

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                          • #14
                            Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

                            Originally posted by Lalalinder
                            I want to try the one in Georgetown too, just haven't ventured over there yet. Have you been there?
                            You mean Kauai Family Restaurant? You MUST go; it's one of the best in the area, run by Peter Buza. But if we are going to discuss this further, we should start a different thread, as we'll go WAY off topic.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Maui becoming the "Mainland" Island?

                              ok, back on topic, I plan to take my Caucasion face to the Kauai Family Restaurant soon.

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