Micronesian in Hawaii

[cynsaligia]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

this is my take. micronesians in hawaii suffer the fate of being the last ethnic/political group of a certain number to arrive to these shores. being the newest kids on the block, they're subject to distrust, discrimination and disgust by those who have already established their communities here. some variation of the negative remarks being said about "micros" has been said about "flips," "yobbos," "changs," and "japs" before them.

on the mainland, italians, irish and polish (among others) have, in the past, suffered similar treatment and perception.

sometime down the line, another ethnic group will become the new kid on the block and micronesians will be seen with more respectful eyes, as the filipinos, koreans, chinese and japanese before them.

i'm not saying it's right (bcs it's not). i'm saying this is what's happening now, it's happened before, and it will happen again. people often hate change unless it directly benefits them and therefore spew their hate upon those who are the catalyst for that change.

one other thing i'll add on behalf of my part-palauan partner in crime, eric: the honolulu weekly article, at certain times, may lead readers to believe that palauans are micronesians. while both participate in the compact of free association, palau and micronesia are different nations. additionally, ethnically, they are different people, as palauans are melanesian.

[escondido100]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

i think if you take any population and make them dependent on government for their income and welfare then you are doing them no favors. we have treated these folks terribly and no amount of guilt payments is going to make up for that
we have direspected their culture by expecting them to exceed here by our standards when their culture has an entirely different way of measureing successful and happy living. for the feds to not live up to the promises made when we trashed their home is unconscionable. to expect hawaii to make up where the feds have dropped the ball is a crime.
we need to ask these folks what they need to succeed on their island homes and give it to them....happily and freely.
I see them living on one acre lots in ocean view and the living conditions are terrible. 10 to 20 children and adults with no power no water and no homes
they live in old minivans and cook over open fires. the teachers wonder why the kids come dirty and hungry to school and can"t seem to learn like the other kids. why do we ignore them?

[snowbird]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

Here is a great article from the Weekly.

Thank you, Turtle Girl.... very interesting. Most informative.

[zff]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

First of all, I don't think it has anything to do with them being Micronesian... or Palauan or Marshallese. I also don't think that it's simply because they are the most recent wave of immigrants. I think the Compact of Free Association was poorly thought out, and it's fostering racism here in Hawaii.

This may be an oversimplification, but here's the way I see it: Non-CoFA immigrants come to America for the same reason people go to job fairs -- for the opportunities. CoFA immigrants come to America for the same reason people go to welfare offices -- for the handouts.

It's not the CoFA's countries' fault. We invited them to do it. We wronged them -- we tested nukes in their waters, they allow our Navy to roam their waters -- so they come here to collect their due. We could've made the same deal with many other nations/races/people and we would've gotten the same results. It has nothing to do with Micronesian, Palauan or Marshalese culture or people. It's human nature.

I don't think you can really compare these most recent immigrants to similar waves that preceded them. Previous waves of immigrants have been of the job-seeking variety. Any lazy riffraff either got deported or never bothered coming. The immigrants who stayed were hard-working, responsible people and were generally accepted by the existing population. Because of the CoFA, the current wave of immigrants are a kind this country's never seen before. One that never has to get a job. One that can become a ward of the State without fear of deportation. One that can leech off the system without ever having to give anything back. One that does all this because we told them they were entitled to it.

Ok, granted, not every CoFA immigrant has this attitude. Sure, and not everyone in the welfare office is there to milk the system. You have to admit, though, that the people you meet at a welfare office are quite different that the people you meet at a job fair -- even though they are ultimately there for the same thing. It wouldn't be fair to judge an entire population by just the ones you meet in a welfare office, and we told Micronesia that we'd be their welfare office.

[TATTRAT]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

Amazing topic/thread, and I will comment in depth once I am feeling like a long winded report. . .

My work time on Oahu was greatly improved by my Micronesian workers, much to as I am finding my key employees here in D.C. to be pilgrams of Central America.

Subscribed.

[Walkoff Balk]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

There are two rules for recent immigrants to follow aside from physically hurting people. Those are "no make a" or "no take people's stuff." Just respect the local people and be nice, then they go have your back wen you need help.

[craigwatanabe]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

There are two rules for recent immigrants to follow aside from physically hurting people. Those are "no make a" or "no take people's stuff." Just respect the local people and be nice, then they go have your back wen you need help.

Some of the best work ethic I've seen in co-workers came from Micronesians.

[Walkoff Balk]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

Some of the best work ethic I've seen in co-workers came from Micronesians.

You can say that about any ethnic group. No one group is better than another.

[acousticlady]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

Several years ago, I was living in a small apartment complex. The apartment next to us was empty. Then one day I saw a young woman getting water from the outside spigot. I said hello, she nodded shyly and scurried into the apartment. We figured we had new neighbors and she was cleaning it getting ready to move in or whatever. A few days (weeks?) later, I saw another woman - maybe a little older, but not much (definitely not the others mother). She too disappeared back into the apartment. Then one day I hear a baby crying. By this time it had become routine for one of the women to get water from the outside spigot. They always filled what looked to me as a cleaning bucket. I even commented to my husband about how much they clean. One day I mentioned the baby - asking how he/she was doing. All of a sudden the woman smiled and said "baby?" and she motioned for me to follow her. It was at this point that I realized she didn't speak any english. She took me into the apartment and there was the other woman sitting on a couch with an adorable little baby who was all full of smiles. Then I noticed that the couch was the only piece of furniture in the place. Not even a lamp. I asked if they were ok, but they didn't seem to understand. A few days later, I saw a strange man (who seemed to be giving me stink eye) come through the yard and went into the apartment (instead of going to the front door). That was the last I ever saw of any of them.

I realize now that they were micronesians who were squatting in the apartment. My guess is that they didn't have any water or electricity. I'm also guessing that the man was the father and the one who set them up there. And my coming over to see the baby may not have set well with the man. Maybe they were illegal? Who knows. The women seemed very shy, but were always nice and seemed to appreciate my friendliness. I hope everything turned out ok for them.

[craigwatanabe]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

You can say that about any ethnic group. No one group is better than another.

Yes I can say that about any ethnic group, and in this case I mentioned the Micronesians.

And I'm not being racist about my comments unlike your implied perceptions that I am. Sheesh!

[Walkoff Balk]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

And I'm not being racist about my comments unlike your implied perceptions that I am. Sheesh!

But, I sounded like the racist with negative stereotypes compared to your positive observations.
Calling race on everything is like holding in football. You can call holding on every play.

[Frankie's Market]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

And I'm not being racist about my comments unlike your implied perceptions that I am. Sheesh!

But, I sounded like the racist with negative stereotypes compared to your positive observations.
Calling race on everything is like holding in football. You can call holding on every play.

As I predicted, it's hard to maintain civility in this kind of discussion.

With that said, hats off to Zff for sharing some very insightful comments that was stated in a way that was honest without being patronizing nor being superficial "feel good" praise. Groups like the Micronesians and Marshallese have to deal with challenges that go beyond just being the latest in the wave of immigrants coming to the US. The circumstances that have led them to entering this country (being displaced from their homes and traditional way of life by nuclear testing) are unique and aren't directly comparable to the experience of other immigrant groups.

[craigwatanabe]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

Well let me clear the air then, WB I appreciate your concerns for noting that everyone is not better than another. I can appreciate that

And FM yes in the end we all tend to bias ourselves one way or another. It's almost impossible to remain objective in this diverse world we live in. For if we were objective, there wouldn't be much diversity left to distinguish ourselves from the rest of the races on this planet. Good or bad, racism is a necessary thing that keeps our cultures intact and special.

[Kaonohi]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

Good or bad, racism is a necessary thing that keeps our cultures intact and special.

Sorry, Craig; racism is 'discrimination' based on ethnicity.

Not all Micronesians fit into the same slot you reserve for them, as the same as not all haoles, Hawaiians, portuguese, or Asians the same.

Get real.

Those of us who are conscious of our role in ALOHA, as being a force who brings people together in understanding and cooperation, to understand, love and cooperate in our mutual survival, know we must reach out to welcome those who do not understand our customs and values, and to invite them to share these values (or not).

No one needs to give up their culture to do this; all we need is to understand and cooperate.

That, in itself, is a tremendous barrier to overcome. The brunt of that barrier is thrust upon our new citizens; are you ready to help? Or will you be another 'racist?'

K!

[craigwatanabe]

Re: Micronesian in Hawaii

Okay my bad. It's not racism per say. But we all do have some level of subjectiveness about how we feel about certain races.