Am I Wrong To Feel This Way?

[makepagirl]

OKAY..I AM VERY VERY CONFUSED RIGHT NOW.MEETING MY DAD,ELDERLY AUNTIES & UNCLE IN MY ADULT LIFE HAS BEEN AN EYE OPENING & LEARNING EXPERIENCE. MY DAD & UNCLE REMEMBER NOT BEING ABLE TO SPEAK HAWAIIAN WHEN THEY WERE KEIKIS. REMEMBER BEING AT OHANA GATHERINGS WHERE THE OLDER ONES WOULD STOP SPEAKING & SINGING HAWAIIAN IF KIDS NEAR BY.THEY'D GET ONE DIRTY LICKIN IF THEY SPOKE IT IN PUBLIC & AT HOME.OR EVEN ASKED ABOUT IT.I'VE BEEN GETTING INFO FROM KAHEA?..KAU INOA..FREE HAWAII..HAWAIIAN NATION & AM TRYING TO LEARN. HAWAII WAS THEIR OWN NATION RIGHT? IT WAS TAKEN..SONGS,DANCE,RELIGION,ETC..INCLUDED..RIGHT? NOW HAWAIIANS ARE FIGHTING FOR THEIR OWN RIGHTS..NOW FAST FORWARD A LITTLE. WE LIVE IN A TOWN THAT NOW HAS MANY CULTURES. BUT IN PAST 7 YRS,EVERYWHERE I GO,MORE & MORE THINGS ARE SPANISH ONLY.INSTRUCTIONS AT LAUNDRY MAT,CAR WASH,SCUSE ME GUYS BUT FEMININE PRODUCTS,FOOD ITEMS,SIGNS,ETC..I'VE HAD CUSTOMERS LEAVE MY JOB(ASHLEY FURN.) ANGRY BECAUSE I DONT HAVE SPANISH CREDIT APPS.& THAT I HAVE TO HAVE A VALID U.S.PHOTO ID,I HAVE 2 SIS IN LAWS WHO ARE TEACHERS IN DIFF. COUNTIES WHO HAVE FAMILIES REFUSING TO LEARN ENGLISH.THEY ONLY WANT THEIR CHILDREN TO SPEAK SPANISH..TODAY MY HUBBY & I GO TO WALMART..(NOT A REGULAR THING) WE'RE HANDED PAMPHLETS AS WE GO IN.I CANT READ MINE,ITS SPANISH.WHEN WE LEAVE I ASK GEORGE WHAT IT WAS.HE LAUGHED & SAID DUH..BLOOD DRIVE INFO FROM RED CROSS..HIS WAS IN ENGLISH!! HE WAS AS SHOCKED AS I WAS!SO I WALK BACK TO THESE PEOPLE ,(WHO BY THE WAY WERE CUSTOMERS OF MINE IN THE PAST)HAND IT BACK & ASK IF THEY HAVE ONE IN HAWAIIAN BECAUSE I CAN'T READ WHAT THEY GAVE ME.(I COULDN'THAVE READ A HAWAIIAN 1 EITHER BUT!!!) ONE LOOKED AT THE OTHER & SAID..IF YOU'RE NOT SURE "WHAT THEY ARE" THEN GIVE EM ENGLISH & SPANISH FLIERS!! AN AFRICAN AMERICAN CPLE STANDING THERE SAID YEA, DO YOU HAVE ONE IN AFRICAN? I'M NOT PREDJUDICED.I'VE BEEN RAISED AROUND IT.I TRY TO NOT GET INVOLVED IN POLITICS CAUSE BASICALLY BIG WORDS CONFUSE ME.AS KEIKIS COMING FROM HAWAII TO THE SOUTH(EARLY 70S), MY BRADDA & I WERE CONSIDERED SLOW BECAUSE OF OUR PIDGIN.(SO EVEN TRYING TO TYPE IT MAKES ME FEEL WRONG).AND TAKING SHOES OFF AT CLASSROOM DOOR MADE EM ALL LAUGH!! BUT I DONT UNDERSTAND WHY ALL OF A SUDDEN IT'S AUTOMATIC THAT EVERYTHING SHOULD BE IN SPANISH.WE ARE ALL CULTURES.A MELTING POT.SOME OF US MORE THAN OTHERS.I KNOW I';M AMERICAN.BUT I AM HAWAIIAN.I SEE NO OTHER LANGUAGES BESIDES ENGLISH,NO CHINESE, HAWAIIAN, JAPANESE, & SO ON. UNLESS IT'S SPECIFICALLY AN "ETHNIC " STORE OF WHICH WE HAVE NONE ANYWHERE NEARBY.MY THING IS HOW CAN A HERITAGE BE TAKEN FROM SOME BUT THEN ANOTHER BE FORCED ON OTHERS..I'M CONFUSED..OFFENDED...I REALLY NEEDED TO VENT.WE ARE ALL EQUAL.....I KNOW THIS MAY BE RAMBLING TO SOME BUT THAT'S JUST ME..IF I'VE OFFENDED ANYONE.PLEASE FORGIVE ME.I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND...
"WHY CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG".....OR STICKER I JUST SAW "WHY CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET A BONG?"...KIMMI

[Keanu]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way??

My sister lives in San Diego and hates it when people try to speak spanish to her because they think she's mexican.

I get annoyed too, the other day I drove through Jack in the Box and noticed a sign at the pickup window that was written in Spanish.

[Pomai]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way??

Oh my. I'm gonna' need eyeglasses after reading that. Kimmi, please use upper/lower case and paragraphs next time you vent.

As far as the Spanish thing, there's a stipulation somewhere in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (enacted in '94) that requires products, industrial relations (labor) and other services in/from the US include Español in the language used or written; which is why that Zenith TV you just bought has half the instruction booklet written in Español.

If the Hawaiians attain a sovereign nation, it's unlikely they would be post-drafted into NAFTA, as the population nor industrial output probably wouldn't be large enough to be recognized as beneficial to NAFTA. There's lots of red tape and fat in the agreement, but overall it's proven to have benefited the 3 nations (US/CANADA/MEXICO). Sorry Kimmi, but politics are involved.

That would be kinda' neat though. Imagine setting up your new TV, reading the set-up instructions in Hawaiian.

My late grandmother spoke fluent Hawaiian, but she was very modest about using it as her grade schools (on the big island) at the time forbid its use, and she never forgot that.

[Pua'i Mana'o]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way??

can I get the cliff notes version of this vent, please? Mahalo!

[makepagirl]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way??

So sorry about that! The weather here is horrible! Everytime I tried to post, my computer blinked off.That was my 3rd time!!
Mahalo for the explanation tho!! happy sunday all!!

[Pua'i Mana'o]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way??

wait...seriously, what was it that offended you? Past transgressions towards Hawaiians and/or your family, or receiving a flyer in WalMart? I am confuddled, but want to know...

[na alii]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way??

My sister lives in San Diego and hates it when people try to speak spanish to her because they think she's mexican.

I get annoyed too, the other day I drove through Jack in the Box and noticed a sign at the pickup window that was written in Spanish.

LOL....reminds me of a few friends and co-workers visiting in Southern Cal. and they get mistaken for a Mexican. You got to admit that a lot of local folks can pass for Mexicans and visa versa.

[EastCoastTropics]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way??

Ya know that feeling that you're being stared at when out in public? And then you look up and they are staring at ya! Had that happen to me many times....I look up and there's a bunch of Vietnamese folks standing there waiting for me to answer! I give them my befuddled look and they tell each other (in english) that I don't speak Vietnamese!

[na alii]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way??

Ya know that feeling that you're being stared at when out in public? And then you look up and they are staring at ya! Had that happen to me many times....I look up and there's a bunch of Vietnamese folks standing there waiting for me to answer! I give them my befuddled look and they tell each other (in english) that I don't speak Vietnamese!

LOL...another one that reminds me of an experience with my co-worker. My co-worker is 1/2 Filipino and 1/2 Japanese and his wife is Vietnamese. One year they went on a trip to Vietnam and came across a market place. It was then when an elderly woman started speaking Vietnamese to him so using hand gestures he replied with no speak Vietnamese. His wife explained to the elderly woman that her husband doesn't speak Vietnamese. The elderly woman then replied back asking what kind of Vietnamese he is not speaking Vietnamese. It was then when the wife explained that he is not Vietnamese.

[sinjin]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way?

Yes, you are wrong.

Spanish is the second most common language in the U.S.

It's spoken by more people in the Americas than English.

Apparently anyone living in the South long enough might be infected by the endemic bigotry of the region. Shame that that includes Hawaiians. Latinos are here to stay folks. Coming to a town near you.

[alohabear]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way?

OKAY..I AM VERY VERY CONFUSED RIGHT NOW.

Is there a reason for all this yelling?

[Keanu]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way?

Latinos are here to stay folks. Coming to a town near you.

I don't think there will be an influx of latinos here in Hawai'i anytime soon... too much of a swim.

[sinjin]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way?

I don't think there will be an influx of latinos here in Hawai'i anytime soon... too much of a swim.

I'll take that bet.

[PoiBoy]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way?

MY THING IS HOW CAN A HERITAGE BE TAKEN FROM SOME BUT THEN ANOTHER BE FORCED ON OTHERS.

Mexicans have also had their heritage stripped from them. Now they have colonial heritage.

I'M CONFUSED..OFFENDED...I REALLY NEEDED TO VENT.WE ARE ALL EQUAL.

There is no such thing as equality in the real world. Big business loves cheap labor. They could care less what language mexicans speak...as long as the mexicans work for little pay.

I'll take that bet.

Too expensive for them and not enough jobs.

[SusieMisajon]

Re: Am I Wrong To Feel This Way?

Sounds as if the backlash has begun.