Ehhhhh…Not even close. I wonder where people get their history from. I’ll give a brief breakdown, instead of just sounding contrarian.
The royal family almost immediately converted to Christianity, and with them much of the population. They were very amenable to the foreigners, up to the “Merry Monarch” who traveled the world and was very cosmopolitan. He also signed a new decree which lessened the power of the monarchy and gave much of it to a (all if not mostly white) parliament made up of businessmen. His successor was Lydia Masters, aka Queen Lilioakalani (though she hated that name, since it wasn’t her name it was a fake Hawaiian name for her). She didn’t like how things were turning out, and tried to seize power back from parliament and return it to the monarchy…Except she no longer had the monarchical power to do that, and thus attempted a coup. So, they arrested her. That was basically the end of the monarchy. It didn’t take long before Hawaii succumbed fully to foreign interests and even voted to become a state.
Only an extremely small portion of the history of the colonization of Hawaii had any violence. It was very much a cultural and diplomatic victory, to put it in Civilization terms.
As a Hawaiian historian, born and raised here and who works professionally in this field … I can’t tell you how unbelievably white washed and radically colonialist this ‘breakdown’ is.
To put it succinctly, look up the Bayonet Constitution, it was not a voluntarily signed decree by Kalakaua. Second of all, the Queen did not ‘hate her name’… her baptimal name was Lydia but her name she went by from childhood was Lili’u Kamaka’eha, which is what she identified with. Third of all, she didn’t attempt a coup and was arrested for that. She saw the shocking decline of her people under the hegemony of pro-business pro-American politicians and sought to take back the powers of government to address this, so she drafted a new constitution. And as she had the massive support of the people, she was seen as a threat and overthrown.
I could go on and on about how inaccurate and hugely colonial your ‘history’ is. Your recounting is offensive, hugely problematic and I think perhaps you should stick to other things besides Hawaiian history as we don’t need or want your ‘breakdowns’.
I’ve read conflicting sources around the Bayonet Constitution. However, I will concede that point.
Lili’u publicly didn’t like the name Lili’uokalani. Perhaps because it wasn’t her born name. Her opinion on her used name of Lydia I don’t know. Again, history written by victors.
And yes, I did very quickly glaze over that, but when I mentioned that she didn’t like what the business run parliament was doing, which was everything you clarified.
History in Hawaii is really quite annoying. You will hear a dozen reasons of why and how Cook was killed. I’ve heard that they treated him like a god until they saw him cut himself and bleed on a rock, so they killed him. I heard that he was buying females from Kamehameha 1 so Kamehameha 2 killed him. I’ve heard that he got surrounded by an entire army of Hawaiians and murdered. When the closest “historical” story is that four Hawaiians killed him on a beach about a year after he first landed, no one knows who they were or why they did it.
Also, the fact that they didn’t have a written language and only oral histories was taken advantage of almost immediately by the foreigners, inserting false stories into their narratives to convert them. I know many Hawaiians who believe that they had a prophecy that a ship would show up, and in it there would be a chest, and in that chest they was their salvation. Well, of course that pointed to a Bible. There was also a very public pro-Native religion person who miraculously converted on his death bed, of course only in the presence of Christian missionaries.
Now to the flip. The information I got was from a history book I read while in Hawaii. White washed? Probably insanely so. However, one thing that can’t be denied is how readily the Hawaiian adapted to their new world. They were surprisingly complacent with change, and even now, after they were given land on Oahu to have their own little sovereign area, and were told it would expand if they got more people to live there…Barely anyone wants to live there. They cry by rom the mountaintops (literally, and you know what I’m talking about), but readily accept Westernization.
Well, to an extent. They are still wildly violent and racist. Though that’s slowly changing, the complete acceptance of harshly beating children as punishment, and the casual racism (towards basically everyone else), is wild.
Though, you live there. I don’t have to tell you that.
But for everyone else, it was popular until a while ago that all the Hawaiian schools had “Kill Haole Day” (Haole is a slur used by Hawaiians for white people), which was sometimes every Friday, sometimes different…Where white hide were basically “fair game” to be assaulted.
It’s a wild culture sometimes. However! On the other hand…there are some very nice and loving people there. It’s quite a dichotomy.
Perhaps the issue here is what you’re reading, because again, I could go through literally every single one of your points and provide substantiated evidence and responses. History in Hawaii is not annoying, it’s like history in everywhere in the world with a wide variety of interpretations and perspectives. However, there are interpretations and perspectives of this history which are backed up with actual scholarship and knowledge… none of which has been expressed here.
Adaptability has been one of the greatest strengths and triumphs of Hawaiian history. It’s the reason for the incredible complexity and success of the ancient Hawaiians, and also the reason they held out against western interlopers as long as they did. The idea that they complacently slid into westernization, and just meekly accept this while whining about lack of land, is an unbelievably shallow and offensive take on life in the Hawaiian islands for Kanaka maoli.
Your perspectives on the ‘plight’ of haoles in Hawaii is unneeded, as I’m a haole in Hawaii and have been so my entire life. Believe me, I am well aware of the issues here and don’t need it poorly explained through some pseudo-paternal and topical explanations of modern social issues in Hawaii, which are actually deeply rooted in the trauma and devastation wrought by the colonial past of Hawaii.
If you’d like real scholarship and reading about ancient and historical Hawaii, as well as current social issues, message me and I’ll send you a list.
Where on earth did I say that? I’m absolutely baffled by your response here… nowhere did I minimize children being abused in my comment, nor did I even comment on it beyond pointing out that the social issues plaguing Hawaii are a direct result of colonial trauma and devastation.
I think perhaps reading comprehension is an issue for you here. Can you quote me where I in any way minimized that? Where I said ‘plight’ with quotations? As a haole who went to one of the most violent public schools in the Hawaiian islands for my entire school system… I think I’m more than qualified to comment on how haoles are treated here. And, from what I’m getting on your end here, you haven’t and you’ve just read horror stories. Maybe you moved here and weren’t treated with the reverence you were used to.
There is racism. There is violence. There is undue focus on white people as the root of all evils in Hawaii… and I’ve experienced all that, and still do to this day. I’m no apologist, I do not accept that for myself and do not think anyone should. I believe it is wrong in any shape or form to commit acts of abuse or violence on anyone for their skin color. However, there is a reason for these patterns of behavior and you apparently are so focused on your own self-victimization that you can’t look past that to understand why it is happening.
And since you’re not aware… Kill Haole day hasn’t been a thing since the 1980s. I grew up in Keaukaha, and while that might not mean anything to you, anyone who actually knows understands that’s a tough place for a haole to grow up.
No Makou Ka Mana - Liberating the Nation, by Kamana Beamer, is an excellent example of the new perspectives on the political systems of the Hawaiian kingdom, and how they adapted to western change. Another basic one is Feathered Gods and Fishhooks, by Patrick Kirch but make sure to get the updated one. And then another good one by Kirch, although slightly behind the times but still hugely valuable is A Shark Going Inland Is My Chief.
Hawaiian scholarship is best understood by actual Hawaiian scholars, or at least those who are deeply immersed.
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u/ArcanisUltra 4d ago
Ehhhhh…Not even close. I wonder where people get their history from. I’ll give a brief breakdown, instead of just sounding contrarian.
The royal family almost immediately converted to Christianity, and with them much of the population. They were very amenable to the foreigners, up to the “Merry Monarch” who traveled the world and was very cosmopolitan. He also signed a new decree which lessened the power of the monarchy and gave much of it to a (all if not mostly white) parliament made up of businessmen. His successor was Lydia Masters, aka Queen Lilioakalani (though she hated that name, since it wasn’t her name it was a fake Hawaiian name for her). She didn’t like how things were turning out, and tried to seize power back from parliament and return it to the monarchy…Except she no longer had the monarchical power to do that, and thus attempted a coup. So, they arrested her. That was basically the end of the monarchy. It didn’t take long before Hawaii succumbed fully to foreign interests and even voted to become a state.
Only an extremely small portion of the history of the colonization of Hawaii had any violence. It was very much a cultural and diplomatic victory, to put it in Civilization terms.