Rod Tam: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

[buzz1941]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

The difference between Dog and Tam is that Dog was having a private conversation with a family member, whilst Tam was in a public forum...

[Ron Whitfield]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Not much difference. Dog used the word in his daily life and simply got busted, whereas Tam blurted it out for everyone to hear.

Haole is the same thing. It's used innocently by millions, even me (a white guy), but it's also often given a pass because the F word isn't always prefixed, but inferred by the tone of voice in many instances.

There is tons of racism in Hawaii, it's handed down from parent's and older family members and constantly perpetuated from generation to generation.
The reverse is also true, by those coming to the islands against locals of all sorts.

I grew up somewhat racist and bigoted near Watts in So. Cal. I hate it, and have largely outgrown it, but it's a constant battle for me.
Many folks don't care to do the battle, and aren't ever called on it, so they think they can get away with it and generally do, as has been the case for decades.
It's getting worse and worse.

[timkona]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Being critical of Tam's intellect is a fair call. Says a lot about the folks who live in his district and voted for him. When ignorance is a source of pride, the level of entertainment is always high.

[matapule]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

I grew up and lived for years in a SoCal community that had a significant Mexican worker population. I lived with Mexicans, played with Mexicans, worked with Mexicans, and went to school with Mexicans. I currently live in Mexico but will be relocating to Hawai'i soon.

Wetback is a term that is rarely used in the Central Valley of California anymore. I never hear it used in Mexico because it has no relevance in Mexico. Anglos in California used the term years ago and so did Chicanos (Mexicans born in California). Whether it was derogatory or not depended on the context in which it was used. Most of the time when wetback was used it was a derogatory term of condescension by both Anglos and Chicanos toward poorer Mexicans (whether legal or illegal but most of the time illegal) who crossed the border looking for field labor work. These would be transient workers who would return to Mexico and their families after making a "fortune" picking and harvesting local fruits and vegetables. It was used very much like the term "okie" to refer to poor transient Anglos from the dust bowl days, who were generally from the mid-west and particularly from Oklahoma.

My SIL is visting right now from a small Central Valley California town with over 50% Mexican population. She says she never hears wetback used anymore because nobody swims the river anymore to get there. Now they are called Winnebagos because they cross over illegally in the back of RV's! (Okay, she's a jokster, she just made that part up). The term wetback is now passe as well as okie. Those days are over when the terms were descriptive of a situation that no longer exists.

Whether using the word wetback would cause a fight depended on how you said it to a Mexican. If you said it with a smile and a laugh, they would laugh too. Nothing more than just joking around in poor taste. If you said it in anger, it would develop into harsh words and perhaps a fight. Heck, my Chicano buddies even called me a wetback from time to time when I said something stupid, which was more often than I care to admit.

I don't know what was in Mr. Tam's heart, but the term is irrelevant and out of context in Hawai'i. If he had asked me, I would have advised him not to use it. It makes him look foolish, uneducated, less than diplomatic, .......and, ahem, Mr Tam, a little behind the times. It would be like me trying to speak pidgin - totally out of context since I am haole malahini. But Mr. Tam evidently apologized and hopefully he learned a lesson. Time to give him a pass for screwing up once. Screw up a second time, no pass.

Ofa 'atu
Mui Houma

[AlohaKine]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

I thought smart people in politics typically avoid slamming minority groups. It's bad for your re-election - dah?

[Keanu]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

I thought smart people in politics typically avoid slamming minority groups. It's bad for your re-election - dah?

Rod Tam is termed out but if he was to run again, I don't think his comments would be the deciding factor in a political race (unless he were to run for a statewide position like LG) for a couple of reasons:

1) The Hispanic community in Hawai'i is too small to really make a difference in any political race

2) Hawai'i voters (for the most part) support their own kind; the Chinese will continue to vote for Chinese candidates, Filipinos will vote for Filipinos, Japanese for Japanese, Hawaiians for Hawaiians etc. Issues and comments such as those uttered by Councilmember Tam really don't determine the outcome of elections. Tam has a lot of support from his community, that is why he keeps getting elected.

[Amati]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

2) Hawai'i voters (for the most part) support their own kind; the Chinese will continue to vote for Chinese candidates, Filipinos will vote for Filipinos, Japanese for Japanese, Hawaiians for Hawaiians etc.

Ah, here we have racism at work, right in the middle of a discussion on racism.
Many times we do not even know we are doing it.
I expect that such was the case with Rod Tam.

[Frankie's Market]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

When you first meet Rod Tam, it's easy to be struck with the impression that he's not a very good public speaker. And whenever he's made headlines, its sometimes been for embarrassing things like proposing nap time for state workers. And now, it's for this racial slur. He's definitely not the brightest bulb in Honolulu Hale. And he's far from being charismatic. With these kinds of limitations, you'll likely never see him being elected to a major political office.

With all that said, Tam has spent many years in elected politics in both the legislature and now, the city council. He's popular with his constituents because he's quite accessible. I recall that when he was a state rep., he was a regular presence at neighborhood board meetings, school PTSA meetings, and other community functions. And as far as I know, he's never been involved in any scandal. These sorts of things may not make the newspaper headline, but it does count for a lot with the voters in his district. So contrary to what someone else posted here, his popularity with his constituents goes well beyond his ethnic background.

[almond mocha]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Admittedly the word got my attention, but as a Mexican I wasn't offended by it. Seeing the video of the meeting in which he used he word, it was obvious he had trouble finding the right word to describe a type of worker, and just used the word without thinking. He kind of grinned at the response he got, and I just got the impression that he realized that it might not have been the right word to use, but it was too late to retract. I don't believe that he was using it as a racial slur, especially since it was used in the context of undocumented workers, and not Mexicans in particular. Had he been screaming and yelling and spitting while talking about Mexicans specifically, then I would have taken offense.

[Walkoff Balk]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Comedian Bill Maher described partisan politics as a "Gotcha Moment and then Fake Outrage."

[Leo Lakio]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Hey, almond mocha - welcome to HT!

[Keanu]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Ah, here we have racism at work, right in the middle of a discussion on racism.
Many times we do not even know we are doing it.
I expect that such was the case with Rod Tam.

It's not racist to point out the obvious.

[TuNnL]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Seeing the video of the meeting in which he used he word, it was obvious he had trouble finding the right word to describe a type of worker, and just used the word without thinking. He kind of grinned at the response he got, and I just got the impression that he realized that it might not have been the right word to use, but it was too late to retract.

This is the most concise analysis yet of Rod Tam and his now infamous “remark.” I would say that what Scriv and Ryan are saying needs no repeating, but it's obvious to me by the continuing debate, it cannot be underscored enough. Mike Lowery makes a mystifying point that he didnt hear the term in California. Of course, he didnt hear it there. There are tons of illegal immigrants in that state, most of them from Mexico or other Latino nations. That is NOT the case in Hawai‘i. Nearly all our immigrants come from Asia, and local people as a consequence, know very little about Hispanics, and what kind of terms might be offensive to them.

Those who continue to put this “no excuse, it’s racism with intent” argument forth have almost certainly never met Rod Tam, or witnessed few if any of his public speaking appearances. I will go on the record and say that I have personally spoken with Tam on more than one occasion, and can safely say IMHO and with no malice intended, that the guy isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed.

When he says he didn’t know the term wetback is viewed as a racist term, I have to believe that’s almost certainly true. As much as I disdain Timkona’s cause-and-effect oversimplification, he has one thing right: many people in Hawai‘i are simply unaware of the racially charged atmosphere’s lack of diffusal on the mainland, which lead to innocent terms like “wetback” taking on racial overtones. (Ron Whitfield gives a thoughtful comparison to the word haole, and I would just add it’s important to emphasize that like “wetback”, it is only stereotypes that have perverted the word haole to imply racial connotations) Comedians delicately dance around racial jokes outside anywhere but a few big cities, while in Hawai‘i, popular entertainers like Frank DeLima will brazenly dedicate an entire show to it with no apologies.

If you listen to Tam’s explanation he actually states he used a “legal term.” What that says to me, is he’s still scratching his head trying to figure out how that term had initially come to mind, and why when he was exposed to it, it wasn’t clarified to him that the term had racial overtones. I’m pretty sure there’s a fair amount of Hawai‘i residents who had never heard the term before Tam’s utterance, and many who avoid news and current events, that still haven’t.

[almond mocha]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Hey, almond mocha - welcome to HT!

Much thanks! I'm glad I re-discovered this site!

[1stwahine]

Re: Hawaii VS "Wetback"

Wat dis thread about?

Auntie Lynn