Taking their turn: Cofa migration, localism and diasporic discourse

Abstract

Critique of how Hawai‘i’s renowned multiculturalism seems to still entertain racism and support U.S. nationalism in the form of anti-migrant sentiment has been introduced and discussed by senior scholars. I theorize that the through-line of Othering in Hawai‘i’ s society is not simply a factor of time lived in this space, nor migrant ability to assimilate. These elements often used to explain why some groups ‘make it’ in Hawai‘i while others have not, overshadow the structural machinations of American Empire that benefit from maintaining a competitive, pyramidal social organization unique to Hawai‘i. With this thesis, I chart a process with its roots in settler militarization and American Pacificism, that led to diasporic societal hierarchization using race, nationality and class, and resulted in modern, liberal multiculturism which uses culture and nationality to maintain perceptions of inferiority. A primary goal of this thesis is to add to the discourse on belonging and identity development in Hawai‘i by emphasizing that Micronesian experiences are being overlooked as an important part of this historical process. Another main goal is to deconstruct the sociocultural category of Local as both a barrier to and key for belonging, theorizing Local not within its usual myriads of descriptions, but rather as a tool, which can be used to strengthen American hierarchical structures. This thesis is divided into three sections, each section taking a critical approach to the colloquialism “taking their turn”: a prevalent, dismissive explanation of anti-migrant discrimination as part and parcel with diaspora to Hawai‘i.