Asians in Hawai'i

"Wayfinders"
Native Pacific people were “wayfinders” and explored the Pacific Ocean using sailing canoes. The ocean was not viewed as a large divider between islands, but rather a fluid highway connecting many places. As Rosa notes, by 5000 BP (before the present), ancestors of Polynesians and Micronesians had starting traveling outside of Southeast Asia (224). They arrived in Hawai’i around AD 400. However, recent archaeological evidence has shown that humans may have arrived as early as 100 BCE and 500 CE. Regardless, Native Hawaiians had been on the islands for at least a thousand years before Captain James Cook’s arrival in 1778 (Rosa 225).

This is a really interesting video about Polyneasian seafaring and Cook's arrival in the Pacific. ghojMWv5AZA&feature=related

This is a video by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program. It's a brief introduction to how APA's are represented throughout Smithsonian museums, but it also mentions some interesting historical facts, like how Pacific islanders used the stars to navigate and explore the ocean. It also shows the types of canoes they used. rrt3e4oBuAE

A Developed People
Relying on charcoal samples from cooking fires, archaeologists have suggested that between 900 and 1300 CE, the amount of cooking fires (and, in connection, the Hawaiian population) grew. Agriculture and aquaculture were able to sustain that population growth, and by AD 1100, a developed society, economy, and religious order had been established (Rosa 225).

Religion in Hawai'i
The Hawaiians believed that numerous spirits filled all of nature, including the ocean, the sky, and the earth itself. They personified those spirits in deities who controlled various aspects of nature and mankind through their mana (supernatural power). Some gods included Kane, Kanaloa, Ku, Lono, and Wakea. Goddesses were Hina, Papa, Haumea, and Pele (Huomala 1). As Huomala writes, “A god communicated its will through dreams, an image, something in nature such as a shark or thunder, or a human prophet” (1). Kahunas (priests) mediated between the gods and the Hawaiian people.

A picture of woodcut-style graphics illustrates the traditional poses of some of the Hawaiian gods http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3516/3220843009_6c5615b9ef_z.jpg

Birth of the Hawaiian Monarchy
1795: The warrior Kamehameha I conquered many of the islands and established the Hawaiian monarchy.

1810: Kamehameha I united the Hawaiian Islands under his rule when he gained control of the the island of Kauai.

1819: Kamehameha I died and his son became Kamehameha II.

This news clip helpfully summarizes the history of the Hawaiian monarchy and explains how foreign businessmen eventually overthrew it. QEhcJC_O984

Captain James Cook’s Expedition
In 1778, Captain James Cook, a British explorer, arrived at the Hawaiian islands. He named them the Sandwich Islands, after the British Earl of Sandwich. His arrival marked the islands’ first contact with the Western world. Cook, and the Westerners who would follow him, would alter Hawai’i in various ways.

Death of Cook
After circumnavigating the islands, Cook returned in 1779 and anchored in Kealakekua Bay. The Hawaiians welcomed him, as his second visit coincided with the Makahiki religious festival, which celebrated the god Lono. Some historians say that the Hawaiians saw Cook as the personification of that god, and because of that, they greeted him with warmth. However, that initial warmth seemed to fade away, as, only a month after he arrived, Cook left again.

On his way out of Hawai'i, Cook's ship ran into gales and a mast was damaged. He returned to Kealakekua Bay for repairs. While there, someone stole the cutter of the ship. The next day, Cook attempted to take the Hawaiian king into custody until the missing cutter was returned. A fight developed and Cook, four of his marines, and a number of natives were killed. Cook’s remains were buried at sea in the Bay (“Timeline”).

Captain James Cook http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Pi3vc3Go67s/TEBD-a_YoII/AAAAAAAABFs/pLqBXbgj3mU/s1600/23+James+Cook.jpg

A depiction of Cook's death http://www.rrsjamescook.com/ArticleImages/History-CaptainCook/cookdeath.jpg

Arrival of Westerners
After Cook’s arrival, other Westerners soon followed. As Hawai’i was “at the geographic crossroads of trade in the northern Pacific Ocean,” beginning in 1786, merchants used the islands as a stopping point to stock up on food, water, and other supplies (Rosa 226). Both the first American missionaries from Boston and the first whaling ships arrived on the islands in 1820. The missionaries not only promoted Protestantism (and later, Roman Catholicism); they also transcribed Hawaiian language, which was previously only spoken. Their emphasis on the importance of the written word and literacy slowly began to chip away at traditional religious beliefs and oral customs (Rosa 227).

Hawaiian Products and the Shift from a Subsistent to a Capitalist Economy
Prior to their contact with the West, Hawaiians relied on a subsistence economy to survive. However, after Cook’s arrival, Westerners began to take notice of products unique to Hawai’i, and a demand for those products sprung up around the world. One significant product was sandalwood, a “fragrant yellowish heartwood” which “has insect repelling properties and is used for carving and cabinetwork” (Princeton). Hawai’i began trading sandalwood with Boston merchants in 1810. Merchants transported the sandalwood between “the California coast, China, the Pacific Northwest, and Alaska” (Rosa 226).

Sandalwood http://www.aroma-pure.com/images/sandalwood.jpg Just to illustrate the importance of something like sandalwood to traders, this is the cover of a nonfiction book about how the trade effected life in Rarotonga (part of the Cook Islands).

http://www.pacificislandbooks.com/JPEGS/They%20Came%20for%20Sandalwood.jpg

By the 1840s and 50s, Hawai’i had also rapidly become the center of the whaling industry in the Pacific Ocean, with “six-sevenths of that ocean’s whaling fleet operating out of the islands” (Rosa 227). Other goods from Hawai’i that were valued elsewhere include pearls from the southeastern Tuamotu and Gambier islands and coconut trees, whose dried copra meat could be transported to Asia or the United States, where it would then be made into various oils (Stillman 252).

After Western merchants began to export products from Hawai’i, the islands’ economic system underwent a radical change, moving from a fish-based subsistence to a modern, industrial, capitalist economy based on production and consumption. This altered Hawai’i physically, culturally, and socially. The landscape itself was disrupted (particularly during the collection of sandalwood), but the population suffered as a result of industrialization as well. Prior to Cook's arrival, Hawaiians had lived in relative isolation. They had little immunity to common Western illnesses, such as "measles, chicken pox, and influenza" (Rosa 228). In addition, because many Hawaiians moved from rural towns to crowded cities, diseases spread more easily.

Missionaries, whalers, and merchants living on the islands began to demand rights of citizenship, private ownership of land, and “a cash-focused system of taxation and wage labor” (Rosa 227). Adopting this Western-style government allowed Westerners to acquire more land in Hawai’i and assert increased control over the Native Hawaiian monarchy and people.

Sugar Plantations
http://library.manoa.hawaii.edu/about/exhibits/images/speccollSugar3.jpg

The formation of the sugar plantations on the Hawaiian Islands is a major event in regards to Asian immigration to Hawaii because for the most part the labor that was used on these plantations was from several Asian countries. The first successful commercial plantation was founded on the island of Kauai in 1835. This was the start of a booming economic resource for these islands and this was largely responsible for increased immigration to Hawaii. The industry was under the control of five former missionary families that became known as the “The Big Five.” These companies included: Castle & Cooke, Alexander & Baldwin, C. Brewer & Co., Amfac, and Theo H. Davies & Co.. With such a large commercial resource in demand the plantation owners began to seek labor outside of the islands, specifically in Asian countries. Over time the sugar plantations brought in 46,000 Chinese, 180,000 Japanese, and 126,000 Filipinos as labors on the plantations.

"UHM Library Hawaiian Collection HSPA - About HSPA." Hawaiian Sugar Plantation Association. University of Hawaii at Manoa Library, Oct. 1996. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. .

"Hawai'i Labor History." The University of Hawai`i - West O`ahu. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. .

Danninger, Lyn. "Bussinesses That Built Hawaii." Hawaii Archives - Honolulu Star-Bulletin Archives, 2002. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. .

Masters and Servants Act
When the companies went to go recruit workers from the different countries they had each worker sign a labor contract. Each contract was very similar to military enlistment papers in that the workers tied themselves to a specific employer for a set number of years. This changed when Hawaii was annexed in 1898, after this the workers were subject to the Masters and Servants Act. One of the repercussions of this act was that it allowed employers to have their workers legally forced to make up any hours lost after their contract was up if at any time they missed or refused to work.

Here is a link to the Act in English and Hawaiian: http://homepages.uhwo.hawaii.edu/clear/NaHakuamekaKauwa.html

"Hawai'i Labor History." The University of Hawai`i - West O`ahu. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. .

Early Chinese Workers
http://library.thinkquest.org/4137/boat.gif

Some of the first Chinese workers arrived in 1852 when they were recruited to work on a plantation in Maui. These first men came over under a five year contract that paid them three dollars a month plus their passage room and board. With the incentive of a better life many Chinese would flock to these plantations. It also didn’t hurt that the companies would target China's more impoverished southern provinces Kwangtung and Fukein. So, with a better life promised in Hawaii workers began to flow in and by the late 1882 the Chinese made up 49% of the plantation work force. This caused concern, though, because of the declining number of Pacific Islanders present in Hawaii. So, in 1883 the Kingdom of Hawaii limited the number of Chinese immigrants to 600 within a three month period. Once Hawaii became a territory of the U.S. in July of 1898 it also fell under any of our laws that were passed so, in the early 1900’s when the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed Chinese immigration to Hawaii was put on a hold.

Fry, Kathie. "Chinese Immigration to Hawaii." Hawaii for Visitors. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. .

"Hawaii's First Chinese." Hawaii History. Info Grafik. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. .

Early Japanese Workers
http://www.hawaiialive.org/resources/image/274.jpg

On May 17, 1868, 148 men and women aboard the Scioto left Yokohama, Japan for Honolulu. By this time many of the Chinese laborers had begun to leave the plantations after their contracts were up for other work, so the owners needed to find another source of cheap labor. Thus they decided to import Japanese workers, but this didn’t go as planned because over 40 of these workers left before their contract was up due to the low pay and harsh work environment. Out of the 40 that left 39 signed a public statement charging the owners with cruelty and breach of contract and because of this the plantation companies struggled to recruit more Japanese workers until 1885. In this year the problem was resolved and immigration began again in full force and by 1902 there were more than 30,000 Japanese immigrants in Hawaii.

Easton, Stanley E., and Lucien Ellington. "Japanese Americans - History, Modern Era, Migration to Hawaii and America, and Efforts to Ban Japanese Immigration." Countries and Their Cultures. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. .

Fry, Kathie. "Japanese Immigration to Hawaii." Hawaii for Visitors. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. .

Early Korean Workers
http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/specials/korean100/images/timeline4_b.jpg

In Honolulu on January 17, 1903 the SS Gaelic docks with 102 Korean immigrants aboard. Like the immigrants before these men and women they were brought to Hawaii for the sole purpose of working on the sugar plantations. One difference between these immigrants from the Japanese and Chinese before them is that most of these men and women were from urbanized towns and not from rural areas.

On July 9, 1905 Korean immigration to Hawaii stops when Japan declares a protectorate over Korea, but once Japan annexes Korea in 1910 immigration begins once more. Along with more laborers in this second wave of immigrants came 700 picture brides. Immigration from Korea continued until 1924 when the Oriental Exclusion Act put a stop to immigration once more.

"Korean Laborers Arrive." HawaiiHistory.org. Info Grafik. Web. 29 Oct. 2010. .

"Koreans in Hawaii: 100 Years of Dreams, Accomplishments." The Honolulu Advertiser. 2003. Web. 26 Oct. 2010. .

Early Filipino Workers
http://opmanong.ssc.hawaii.edu/filipino/graphics/sakadas.jpg

With the continued growth of the farming economy on the Hawaiian islands the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association (HSPA) continued to need more cheap labor on top of the workers they were importing from China, Japan, and Korea. So, they went over to the Philippines and set up centers to recruit men and women in Vigan, Ilocos Sur, and Cebu. So, in 1906 fifteen laborers arrived from the Philippines; this number was so small because many Filipino’s were hesitant to make the trip due to the distance and rumors of wild animals that roamed the Hawaiian islands, but with the continued insistence of the recruitment centers more and more workers began to arrive. So, a year later 150 workers came to Hawaii, and just two years later 639 arrive. The immigration rate continues to escalate and from 1911 to 1920 it’s estimated that 3,000 workers immigrate yearly. By the 1930’s Filipino’s replaced the Japanese as the largest ethnic group working in the plantations.

When the Tydings-McDuffie Law was passed in 1935 it established the Philippines as a commonwealth as a precursor to independence. It also put a limit on the amount of Filipino immigrants to 50 a year. This was a major draw back for the HSPA, so they lobbied to have this changed. They were successful and immigration continued until the beginning of WWII.

"Labor Migration in Hawaii." Office of Multicultural Student Services. Web. 26 Oct. 2010. .

1941-1959: World War Two and Statehood
By 1941, the year of the Pearl Harbor attack, there were nearly 250,000 people of Asian descent living in Hawaii, compared to near 50,000 military personnel, 100,000 Caucasian people (a large percentage made up of people of Portuguese descent) and around 50,000 of native Hawaiian descent, and 14,000 native Hawaiians (Arellano 1). The U.S. declared martial law in Hawaii, which was only a territory at this time, due to its proximity to Japan.

Japanese Internment in Hawaii
The Japanese were not interned in Hawaii the same way they were on the mainland. While there were several internment camps, it would have been detrimental to detain such a huge percentage of the population. The Hawaiian economy was largely dependent on the Japanese as laborers, and could not afford to send them away (Fremon 12). The enactment of martial law by the U.S. government became a sort of alternative to the internment camp. There were enforced curfews, food rations, and personal communications were monitored by the military. While all citizens of Hawaii were subjected to this treatment, the Japanese were treated more harshly. They were not allowed to even own radios are gather publicly. Hawaii was under martial law until 1944.

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/dailypix/2005/Nov/27/FPI511270347AR_b.jpg

Picture of the Japanese internment camp at Honouliuli

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/dailypix/2005/Nov/27/M1127091127.GIF

Site of one of the Japanese internment camps on Oahu.

Asian-American Involvement in the Quest for Statehood
When Hawaii began its quest for statehood in the late 1950’s, Asian-Americans were at the front. Those born in Hawaii while it was a territory were already considered American citizens, but believed that making Hawaii a state, due to its large Asian-American and minority population, would essentially be guaranteeing citizenship equality with whites (Arellano 3). It was for this same reason however that those on the mainland feared granting Hawaii statehood. Despite these fears, and some dissent from native Hawaiians, Hawaii officially achieves statehood on August 21st, 1959.

http://www.sethkaller.net/images/blowups/21403.png

The front page of the Honolulu Advertiser the day Hawaii achieved statehood.

Important Events
1958–61 The Great Famine in China 1964 Patsy Mink is the first woman of Asian ancestry to be elected to Congress 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act Amendments 1974 Elected in Hawaii, George R. Ariyoshi becomes the first Japanese-American governor of a U.S. state 1975 End of Vietnam War 1978 Hawai'i becomes the only state in the U.S. to officially recognize two official languages (Hawaiian and English) 1994 Japanese Americans who had their Waiau property confiscated in WWII were included in federal government apology and redress by President Clinton. 2010 Hawaiian, Daniel Inouye, who was the first Japanese American in the House and later, in the Senate, became President Pro Tempore. This makes him the highest-ranking Asian-American politician in American history. Read more about Inouye, who's had a huge influence on perceptions of Asian-Americans: http://www.goldsea.com/Personalities/Inspiring/inouye.html

JT6jxGMqrRU interview with Daniel Inouye on Asian-American experience

Hawaiian Demographics
With immigration quotas eliminated in 1965, the end of the Korean and Vietnam wars, and the influx of Vietnamese, Chinese,and Laotian (and other ethnic) refugees, and the interest of many Chinese and Japanese tourists, Hawaii's population has skyrocketed in the last 40 years, increasing more than 25% in the 70's to 80's alone. (Hawaiihistory.org) http://www.fairus.org/images/content/pagebuilder/58435.gif Check out this neat chart that lets you watch immigration in Hawaii (try the # of residents setting)  http://www.cis.org/articles/2001/images101/imageUJE.JPG Currently, Hawaii is one of only two (New Mexico being the other) minority majority states in the United States and has one of the highest concentrations of Asian Americans in the U.S. http://knowledge.allianz.com/nopi_downloads/images/Census_Asian.jpg According to the U.S. Census of 2000, 38.5% of Hawaiians identified themselves as of Asian descent (4.1% Chinese, 13.6% Filipino, 12.6% Japanese, 3.1% Korean, 0.7% Vietnamese, 4.2% other Asian). This is compared to the 32.1% reported as White and 5.5% as Native Hawaiian. Interestingly, Hawaii also has a very large mixed race population (21.4% are two or more races). When including mixed races, 58.0% of Hawaiians are some part Asian. (U.S. Census, 2000) http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5sNiS-cF8BI/S8T66pjxqCI/AAAAAAAAAC8/BK-LtB1njJ4/s1600/part+asian.jpg Hapa means "Hawaiian". Book cover of photography by Kip Fulbeck.

Accordingly, 23.6% of Hawaiians reported they spoke an Asian language at home, with 11.9% speaking English less than "very well". As a result of this cultural diversity and plethora of spoken languages, the Hawaiian government is mandated to provide political materials published in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Tagalog and Vietnamese (in addition to English) (United States Election Assistance Commission, 2008). http://hawaii.gov/dbedt/czm/initiative/wec/html/people/socio/images/race_compare.gif

Asian Influence on Hawaiian Culture
In some ways Asian and Hawaiian culture have melded together to create a new culture, in other ways Asian-Americans have brought and kept aspects of their culture separate. Hawaiian food has adopted and combined elements and ingredients of many Asian food favorites as seen in the prevalence of Japanese dishes like sushi, the use of teriyaki, Korean kimchi, the prevalence of rice, Asian noodles, and many other various dishes (Wickford, 2009). http://www.kingshawaiianrestaurants.com/flash/local_place/teri_bowl.jpg http://hawaiianfoodrecipe.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/61th3npzztl__ss500_2.jpg Because of the strong Asian populations, there are strong cultural connections to those countries and cultural pride that can be seen in Chinatowns, settlements of Japanese, specifically the Okinawan Japanese, and other ethnic groups. http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/wysiwyg/image/labor_day_-_okinawan_festival(1).jpg Okinawan Festival in Hawaii ZjYmU16RnM4 This is a short touristy type video that gives a brief, but enlightening look at the Chinatown in Honolulu, one of the biggest chinatowns in the U.S.

http://inchindeep.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/don-ho.jpg http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21PRCNTF45L._SL500_AA300_.jpg http://www.portaloha.com/aukipa/gallery/images/ByodoinTemple/tn_DSCF2329W.jpg Japanese Buddhist Temple http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/specials/korean100/images/timeline6_b.jpg The Korean Studies Building, University of Hawai'i at Manoa. http://soniatasteshawaii.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/chinatown_mauna_kea_shops_1.jpg Restaurant in Honolulu's Chinatown Mixed feelings for Hawaii 5-0 

Images
http://www.hawaiialive.org/viewer.php?resource=274&hostType=sub&hostID=47

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/specials/korean100/timeline/

http://library.manoa.hawaii.edu/about/exhibits/

http://opmanong.ssc.hawaii.edu/filipino/plantation.html

http://library.thinkquest.org/4137/

http://www.fairus.org/site/PageServer?pagename=research_research7067

http://hawaii.gov/dbedt/czm/initiative/wec/html/people/socio/sociotrends.htm

http://www.examiner.com/affordable-travel-in-honolulu/labor-day-favorites-hawaii-makes-priceline-and-orbitz-lists

http://aukipa.portaloha.com/gallery/AllGalleries.html

http://hawaiianfoodrecipe.wordpress.com/island-flavors-sam-choys-cook-book-2/

http://www.soniatasteshawaii.com/2007/01/honolulus_china.html

http://www.amazon.com/Hawaiian-Nisei-Songs/dp/B000056MPY

http://peachspicks.blogspot.com/2010/04/part-asian-100-hapa.html

Additional Links
Illustrative timelines about the history of Hawai'i: http://www.hawaiicapitalculture.org/hcnha/history-culture.html http://www.hawaiihistory.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=ig.page&CategoryID=259

More about Hawaiian religion: http://www.kamhcc.org/Hawaiianreligionandmyths.pdf