Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

[Lei K]

I keep reading stuff (on HT and elsewhere) like "toenail Hawaiian" or "barely Hawaiian" and people dissing 1/32 Hawaiians who relate with their Hawaiian culture. Do people realize that Hawaiians (ancient and modern) did not/do not care about blood quantum? It's not a Hawaiian way of thinking and never was.

If tutu get mo'opuna that are 1/4 Hawaiian or 1/8 (if tutu is half) does that mean her mo'opuna can't possibly be Hawaiian because they aren't 1/2? Blood quantum is not Hawaiian. It's all about genealogy. I believe it's also about culture, living as a Hawaiian. You may get kanaka koko but how Hawaiian are you if you don't care?

Jonah K said something on the "How Racist Are You" thread that made a lot of sense to me...

Hmm. If one believes that someone can be "pure" or "100%" something by "blood quantum", "ethnicity" or some other artificial construct, most likely they are "racist" to a certain degree.

I agree.

Why are some people so hell bent on making Hawaiians into fractions? Part-Hawaiian is Hawaiian when you act Hawaiian and know where your Hawaiian comes from. I have yet to hear a native Hawaiian tell a Hawaiian with less than 50% koko that they aren't a Hawaiian. It's always a non Hawaiian saying things like this.

I never ever ask a "haole" person who says they are English, Irish, etc. just how much are they of that blood. I never ask any other race about blood either but haole is my example here. Most mainland haole people I have met are waaaay mixed and probably couldn't even begin to fraction out themselves like that, yet, Hawaiians are expected to. If your fraction isn't high enough then your Hawaiianess is dismissed.

My husband falls into the waaay mixed group. 2 of 4 of his grandparents are very mixed (English, Scottish, Irish, Dutch, German, you name it!) and the other 2, a bit mixed (Irish/Scottish) and (Swedish/German). Yet on one side they are heavily Irish in culture because g-gpa was from Ireland and the other side heavily Swedish in culture because g-gpa was from Sweden. It all has to do with the most recent immigrant in their family having stronger traditions/culture than the family that is 10th+ generation in America on some lines. Is my husband wrong to call himself Irish before anything? In my opinion no, he grew up with his mom's side, the blood is there and his family lives and celebrates their Irish culture all the time, except when he does something dumb and they call him a dumb Swede. When asked will he say all his ethnic ties? Sure, he has more ancestors than just Irish but Irish is how he feels, his identity. And yes he still does have family in Ireland, whom we plan to visit in the near future.

I'm sure blood quantum issues happen just as often with Native American people as it does with Hawaiian. The moment you say who you are then comes the question, "How much?" I usually will state my mixture right off as I'm obviously (by looks) not pure Polynesian and people will still single out the Hawaiian and ask how much I am of that.

I no longer answer that question when asked, it's rude. If they'd like to know who I descend from and from what islands, I'm more than happy to talk story.

Why on earth should Hawaiians be separated by blood quantum?

[timkona]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

My daughter is learning Hula, and the Hawaiian language.
My yard is full of banana, dry taro, papaya, avocado, breadfruit, etc.
I'm goin surfin today.
I picked up a sack full of trash out front of my house yesterday.
We camped last weekend at Keei Beach.
I love to cook lots of food, and invite friends and neighbors over for dinner. (I will even cook some veggie meals so SFB can enjoy himself too.)

You can check my blood quantum, but you will have to arrest me first.

[Miulang]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

My daughter is learning Hula, and the Hawaiian language.
My yard is full of banana, dry taro, papaya, avocado, breadfruit, etc.
I'm goin surfin today.
I picked up a sack full of trash out front of my house yesterday.
We camped last weekend at Keei Beach.
I love to cook lots of food, and invite friends and neighbors over for dinner. (I will even cook some veggie meals so SFB can enjoy himself too.)

You can check my blood quantum, but you will have to arrest me first.

But you will never be Hawaiian. You cannot buy or earn koko. You either have it or not; you must be born with it.

Miulang

[timkona]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

It's not special to be Hawaiian. Nor is it special to be any other race.

That is the crux of the issue.

[Lei K]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

I'd hate to live in a world where every country and every people were exactly the same without their own customs and traditions. I think different people make the world beautiful. Why travel when your city/country is just like every other city and country in the world?

[Beau]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

Exactly, Leikaina. I remember having a heated discussion with my former "macho" local Japanese boss after he made some comments about Hawaiians and other ethnic groups in Hawaii as not being as harding working as most orientals.

I retorted to him that tourists come here to see and experience the Hawaiian culture and people, not to see all the harding working asians! He had no reply after that.

[scrivener]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

Just curious, LeiKaina: What do you think should have been done with the non-Hawaiian boy, hanaid by a Hawaiian family, when he wanted to go to Kamehameha? It's a tricky issue. I'm sure there's a thread around here somewhere, but I'm too lazy to look it up.

[alohabear]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

Why on earth should Hawaiians be separated by blood quantum?

Why should it matter at all even when applying for HHL?

The legal basis for the establishment of the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) is the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, as amended (HHCA). Passed by Congress and signed into law by President Warren Harding on July 9, 1921 (chapter 42, 42 Stat. 108), the HHCA provides for the rehabilitation of the native Hawaiian people through a government-sponsored homesteading program. Native Hawaiians are defined as individuals having at least 50 percent Hawaiian blood.

Any blood quantum should be entitled. The laws of HHL need to change otherwise in the future no one can quailfy because of all the mixed marriages.

source

[Miulang]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

Just curious, LeiKaina: What do you think should have been done with the non-Hawaiian boy, hanaid by a Hawaiian family, when he wanted to go to Kamehameha? It's a tricky issue. I'm sure there's a thread around here somewhere, but I'm too lazy to look it up.

The thread relates to KSBE and a case where a hanai'd boy on Maui was admitted to the Maui campus. But the reason KSBE gave at the time for admitting him was that they had an extra slot that could not be filled by a qualified Hawaiian student, and according to their current admission policies, non-kanaka maoli students can be admitted to KSBE if there are no qualified Hawaiian students.

Miulang

[D'Alani]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

What is a qualified Hawaiian student? I do not recall any mention of intellect, only that preference would be given to those with Hawaiian blood. I may be totally wrong on this but I was just wondering.

[Pua'i Mana'o]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

this thread ought to be renamed the "My Hawaiian Me" thread. We got self-identity, DHHL, KS admissions of the Haole from Maui, and Plantasian Syndrome alllll wrapped into it. And this thread hasn't even filled out a single page yet.



Focus, people, fooooocccuuuuuus! *snap snap*

[scrivener]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

What is a qualified Hawaiian student? I do not recall any mention of intellect, only that preference would be given to those with Hawaiian blood. I may be totally wrong on this but I was just wondering.

apology in advance to Pua`i, because I'm going to answer this.

No school can provide every need for every student. The single-most valuable thing a private school does is know who its target student is. The screening has little to do with "good enough for _______ school" but really with "is this school right for this student?"

It's not a clear-cut issue. Students who should be admitted are frequently not. Students who are admitted often languish or are dismissed.

You are not doing a student any favors when you admit him or her to a school that's not a good fit. I've looked parents in the eyes and have said, "I think your child can graduate from this school, and the benefits for the school and for the child will be significant. But you and your child have to ask yourself if working your tails off for Cs is worth earning a diploma from this school. It's going to take a lot of work, but can you and your child handle all that work just to be good enough at this school?"

Some have gone elsewhere, where the academic load was less challenging. Others have given it a go, accepting lower GPAs for other benefits (such as a Christian environment, or a short walk to campus, or having all siblings at the same school).

I'm no apologist for institutions, but if the admissions board said there was a lack of "qualified" children, I am inclined to believe it.

This brings up the other argument, of course, about whether or not KSBE can meet the needs of these other children, and I think it's doing a good job in finding out. The profiles of students at the Hawaii and Maui campuses are not the same as at Kapalama. This expansion of services is a good thing for KSBE and for Hawaiian children. I hope it continues.

[Pua'i Mana'o]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

Just curious, LeiKaina: What do you think should have been done with the non-Hawaiian boy, hanaid by a Hawaiian family, when he wanted to go to Kamehameha? It's a tricky issue. I'm sure there's a thread around here somewhere, but I'm too lazy to look it up.

Uh huh. Read it through, but an answer is found in the third-to-last paragraph.

[Lei K]

Re: Fractions, blood quantum, part-Hawaiian, bullsh*t.

Just curious, LeiKaina: What do you think should have been done with the non-Hawaiian boy, hanaid by a Hawaiian family, when he wanted to go to Kamehameha? It's a tricky issue. I'm sure there's a thread around here somewhere, but I'm too lazy to look it up.

Under my old way of thinking AND my new way of thinking about KS the boy wouldn't have got in either way. My new thoughts have everything to do with what I got out of reading Pauahi's Will. Let me explain.

I was, much of my life, heavily influenced by what I "heard" Pauahi's Will was about. Much of what I heard was from my mother, who attended Kamehameha in the 1950's/1960's. She would tell me that it was a school for Hawaiian children and that's how Ke Ali`i Bernice Pauahi Bishop wanted admission to be. I guess in her day they actually enforced blood quantum rules and showed preference for those of more Hawaiian blood. She said people would get irritated when a haole teacher's child was allowed to attend. So my point of view was hey, it made sense for Hawaiians to have a school where they can both get educated and be immersed in their culture and they should protect the right for their school at all costs. So under that way of thinking I would have said a`ole to the kid getting into KS.

Now that I've gotten older I'm also a lot more curious. I've finally read Pauahi's Will (mahalo Pua'i) and that threw me off, made me question my old thoughts on the subject. What I get out of it is that Pauahi was a very Christian lady who cared about all the children of Hawai`i (The Nation of Hawai`i), especially those who needed the most help. And I think KS is failing, bad, at helping those whom her will intended. The 43808428475 rounds of qualification to get into KS is ridiculous, they take only the most elite, and I say this with 2 baby cousins currently attending. If KS helped those the will intended to help I'm sure the population of the school would still be Hawaiian, very Hawaiian, even without showing preference. Under my new way of thinking the haole kid still wouldn't have got in because (unless I missed this fact somewhere) he didn't have any learning problems, disabilities, was poor, nor was he orphaned.

I do like the Hawaiian preference and wish they took on the Hawaiian keiki who really need kokua. They should also allow for a certain percentage of brainy keiki, IMO, put into special brainy classes, especially if they are low income Hawaiians who would have never had the opportunity for private school otherwise.

Do I think Hawaiian keiki need to go to KS to become everything they dream of becoming? Absolutely not. My mother was the only one out of 5 children to go and my uncles are happy, successful (at least in my eyes) men. I do think though it helps some become stronger about their culture. To me that is beautiful and part of what KS is about, building stronger Hawaiians. But, that shouldn't mean only the smartest and best behaved Hawaiians get the chance.

Okay, question answered, I think?

[waioli kai]

malevolent deeds by design and by default

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--To me that is beautiful and part of what KS is about, building stronger Hawaiians. But, that shouldn't mean only the smartest and best behaved Hawaiians get the chance.--LeiKaina

Should the day ever come that KS is not forced into the position of having to spend millions to defend itself, its purpose and mission, against anti-KS interests lawsuits perhaps KS will be able to refocus itself and expand KS learning facilities on all the islands. Besides ongoing lawsuits against KS where anti-KS lawyers greedily anticipate a huge return on their malevolent deeds, KS is still some years away from recovering as fully as possible from the misleadership and crimes committed by Henry Peters, Dickie Wong, Larry Mehau, Lokelani Lindsey, John Waihe'e, Gerard Jervis, Gary Rodrigues, Yukio Takemoto,...a veritable army of corruption led by self-righteous, self-indulgent officers of the State, the Estate, the state courts, unions, major corporations and even some Federal appointees.

Beyond that dead albatross tethered around the neck of KSBE, the KS educational focus has, like our public schools, a need to balance that for which it is educating our youth. Neither KS nor our public schools has sustained programs for vocational education. The main KS campuses on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii are virtually entirely dedicated toward educating what they hope are college-bound students, yet there is no reason why Hawaiians must necessarily go to college to be vital contributors and protectors of their culture, their 'aina. I am not suggesting that the major KS campuses become vocational training centers (again, in Kapalama's case) , but I am suggesting that KS invest in facilities and instructors through the islands to teach non-college-bound Hawaiians the modern trades with which knowledge our youth can have a chance of becoming self-confident and self-supporting.

As for our public schools...so much of our childrens' lives is as good as being flushed down the toilet for all the good they get out of our secondary educational system. If an attempt were made to make such more a reality than it already is we would have to hire outside help to make it so. There are many examples one could cite to backup these claims but my favorite is of the public school biology teacher who is forced by her DoE mandated curriculum standards to try teach DNA sequencing to high school students who are quite adept and happy in the auto repair shop though they can barely read or write. Then there are the years on end of English and literature and social studies classes which seem designed mostly to make there be a job where college graduates with degrees in such can find long-term employment.

It could be that the worst thing for our kids is that they live in a system which essentially tells them that they must remain worthless to (or worse, drains upon) the economy until they graduate from high school.