41- HKT on the word Haole

Shared on Facebook: March 9, 2017.
"Who is Mr. Carter or any other foreigner to tell a Hawaiian we cannot use the word haole?"
Throwback Thursday: In 1990 a letter written by a 32 year old Caucasian student at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa was published in the Ka Leo newspaper. The student claimed the Hawaiian word "haole" was derogative and equated it to the n-word. In response, Professor Haunani-Kay Trask published an article in the same newspaper where she provided a brief history of Hawaiʻi, discussed the decline of our language and highlighted the narrative of white supremacy in America. Following her response came a flood of controversy, which included threats to remove her as the Director for the Center of Hawaiian Studies. In spite of it all, Trask was able to keep her position as director, going on to inspire and educate many of today's Kānaka Maoli leaders.
#HaunaniKayTrask #HawaiianStudies #Haole #HawaiianLanguage #WhiteSupremacy #ʻIkeMatters #KeepTheConversationGoing
Source Material:
Island Issues: Racism and Academic Freedom. VHS, 1990.

[@slau330]

wow, what a woman. Strong, articulate and doesn't take any bullshit.

[@SIMBA-sp4hq]

Most women are strong and articulate.

[@wildearth3992]

@@SIMBA-sp4hq No at all especially on 2021

[@SIMBA-sp4hq]

@@wildearth3992 you can leave and take your sexism’s with you

[@YouTubeBrah]

That's Hawaiian girls taked a real man to be with them they not weak they fight better than the boys literally

[@karlos_infamous]

condolences to her and her family. she died recently - July 3, 2021

[@derekreed5989]

I’m in Hawaii right now and I can see what she was talking about. I’m Black and it’s obvious I’m just visiting but it’s SOOOOOOO crazy to me that I have not seen 1 native Hawaiian at this hotel relaxing. There’s a few working but all the people vacationing are mostly White and Japanese. Even the art work is Japanese and the instructions are in English and Japanese. I would think the languages would be the national Hawaiian language and English. It’s looks hella bizarre to me… It’s the equivalent of being in China and seeing no Chinese people accept as workers. It’s low key F’d up. It doesn’t even look like the US. They should be their own country like they used to be. Give Hawaii back to Hawaiian’s.

[@tavioka6243]

I agree with u 💯💯💯 Im a Pacific islander too but frm another island. The US & European countries fucked us over big time.

[@PerrincinaSprecaci]

But why would native Hawaiians need to go to a hotel to "relax"? I mean, they live in HAWAII. Every day is a vacation. I don't say that to be flippant, it's just the truth. I live in a concrete jungle and even I don't have a desire to go to a hotel to relax, I just stay home and do that.

[@teamthoth]

​@@PerrincinaSprecacithere's a community of Hawaiians in Waikiki and they're surfing a lot of the time.

[@awaroots]

@@PerrincinaSprecacieveryday is vacation? Lol you haoles are so confused

[@derekreed5989]

@@PerrincinaSprecaci For the same reason you may stay in a hotel in within your country. Hawaii is a series of islands. They do go from island to island.

[@jendayilee]

Rest in Peace. What a great loss. We need more people like her.

[@danielnekrash6771]

AMERICA 🇺🇸🇺🇲🌎

[@silvertavake5615]

@@danielnekrash6771 you must have nothing going on in your life. Broke, triggered, and uneducated. You come here to be a keyboard troll which speaks volumes of your weak character.

[@faaa.6911]

@@danielnekrash6771 Haole

[@danielnekrash6771]

@@faaa.6911 yup and I'm proud to be a haole I love it

[@codyo2921]

How did she die :(

[@aguadelanoche4971]

Who do you think you are banning someone's native language on their own land!!! SMH

[@teamthoth]

It happens often... Trait of soft genocide

[@myfriendisaac]

Her message is RIGHT ON TIME, now more than ever!

[@MrBigislandbreeze]

More worse now lol

[@faaa.6911]

@@MrBigislandbreeze Haole

[@MrBigislandbreeze]

@@faaa.6911 hahaha dahmmy

[@DaRedeyeJedi808]

......REST IN LOVE...... HAUNANI KAY-TRASK 1949-2021 #ManaWahine #KueKanaka

[@keahi7646]

Thanks for your work Haunani, you make me proud to have known you at school. Please younger Kanaka Maoli, continue Haunani's work, we need you now.

[@msNativegal]

Rest in Power Haunani. We're so grateful for what you've done for us ❤🙏

[@bella1999rules]

God bless her and may she Rest In Peace and Power for all eternity.

[@glaznflip1501]

I’m devastated

[@Sialoi6725]

Rest in peace fearless leader ❤️🙏🌺

[@desperado.1001]

This woman is amazing. Absolutely fearless, fierce, and classy! So much respect for her..

[@jonjonboi3701]

Nah she is just racist towards white people

[@sadiahashmi8860]

She was brilliant & fearless! She was truly a gift to us all. May she rest in peace.

[@Gen3ralGrimReaper]

Such a beautiful soul. She made so many valid points. She’s like the female version of Malcolm X. I love her intellectual mind. I can listen to her all day

[@jap808]

I read somewhere that Malcom x didn't think blacks and whites should mix but for some reason he had light skin and also this lady has Trask as her surname. I think both were brainwashed by commies and full of hate.

[@paulmoore178]

Malcolm X and her were both idiots.

[@entrikenflowers2373]

@@jap808 for some reason? Ever heard of slavery? Well now you know the reason.

[@jap808]

@@entrikenflowers2373 All races were slaves at one time lmfao. It's really easy to do research

[@NYGiantsDiEhArD]

She and Malcolm X were both radical racist trolls whose moral response to prejudice against black skin was to be prejudiced against white skin. They're nothing but racist scumbags. Their philosophies are not philosophies but racial sermons that sound like they're from the dark ages. Their intellectual value and contribution to the world was next to nothing.

[@karlos_infamous]

I feel so sad for native hawaiians, they became minorities in their own land and now, they have to live with non-native immigrants who want to enjoy the benefits of being a US citizen.

[@anthonywike8042]

yah if i was hawaiian id be pissed at the japanese, they have really over run there islands.

[@anthonywike8042]

@Stuffin Puff who gives a fuck what you think is welcome.

[@ppg4667]

You're too in your feelings

[@csansolo]

They have such a horrible life there, terrible suffering.

[@Matt92Machine]

Well at least they didn't suffer a genocide like the native Americans. Compared to that group, native Hawaiians have it pretty good.

[@treehuggerdude4]

Reminds me of sister soulja. Very articulate and educated native scholar

[@djsavagetv]

What a beautiful woman with a powerful outlook on things and the courage to speak up on these issues! Hats off to you beautiful!! I will be going to Hawaii to enjoy myself and learn about the culture very soon! Not to take from that culture or impose my ways, but to just observe and learn 👏🏽👏🏽

[@maluhianow3722]

As a Haole, who used to live in Hawaii (Oahu, Maui, and Kauai), I absolutely LOVE this Woman. Where is she today? I would love to hear her speak more. I have never heard a better advocate for the Hawaiian people.

[@sully3724]

She passed 😢

[@maluhianow3722]

@@sully3724 That must have been a terribly sad day for many many people. I'm so sorry to hear this.

[@SunnyIlha]

She is absolutely totally completely correct and precisely accurate.

[@julietteacosta-santiago4179]

I have found my new idol🙌

[@josephinetracy1485]

Okay, so you can go out and find a white man to service..... just like she did! She passed over every available Hawaiian man...... to marry a white man. They must have had a good ole time, sexually roleplaying.... Master and slave girl games.

[@rodneydinney7179]

I feel so much satisfy listening to her. Everything she said is so true.

[@cantaloupecoke57]

she is a racist. haole is like saying nigger

[@fyasumkaia]

@@cantaloupecoke57 stfu, Haole. 🥳

[@dineh2004]

@@cantaloupecoke57 is it now? Who are you a non Hawaiian to tell Hawaiians what their language is. 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@lojfiojo4725]

@@cantaloupecoke57 No it isn’t . It means foreigner, and unless you have Polynesian ancestry, you are a foreigner in Hawaii.

[@walterhoward5686]

She left out a few things like " ignorance" she left out the part that the Hawaiian community was still in the stone age ,when the white boys showed up, talking about "ignorance " I'm not saying it's good or bad thing it just a FACT !

[@dreams.r5934]

Incredible woman and 100 percent correct

[@dianabrown3396]

I just heard of this lady today. A very close Hawaiian friend who is more like family introduced me to her videos. She was a wonderful advocate for her land. The seeds she has sown can make a change in the way these islands & the native people who live there are perceived. With the help of a person who knows my eyes have been opened to a culture I had only glimpsed before.

[@paulmoore178]

Don’t buy her lies. By the way, the Hawaiians didn’t own any land, the kings did.

[@seanpatrick9870]

​@@paulmoore178okay haole

[@paulmoore178]

@@seanpatrick9870 what do I know about Hawaiian History? My guess is nothing.

[@courtneygreer69]

This is amazing. So glad I stumbled upon this.

[@rreeann]

Rest in Power 💗

[@obhittinthree]

I love it when Haoles try to define what Haole means to us. They come here and realize that they are not the hegemony, so they pout and whine and try to circumscribe our word to match their perceived marginalization. Did this guy even think to ask Hawaiian students or faculty what Haole meant to them and how we use it. I guess when you spend your time looking for the caucasian answer to the N-word, you miss the precious nuance of language and it's meaning to our history and culture.

[@silvertavake5615]

@@danielnekrash6771 apparently you do haole

[@anthonywike8042]

hey, you couldnt even WRITE the word haole before we came along sooooo

[@jasonl4718]

@@anthonywike8042 Soooo...what?? They didnt even need a written language. They THRIVED before westerners came and passed their moʻolelo & naʻau along via chants & oral history. But when white folks did come along, the mōʻi like King Kamehameha II & III all came to understand the importance of reading/writing, and by ~1840 they had the HIGHEST LITERACY RATE PER CAPITA IN THE WORLD. Go ahead and LOOK IT UP. But u knew that yeah? Are you one of the IGNORANT HAOLES Haunani is referring to in the video? And FWIW...Iʻm half-haole myself, but I dont get BUTTHURT by epic indigenous folks BLASTING haole imperialist douchebags like yourself.

[@jap808]

Princess Kaiulani was half Scottish and I guarantee real kanakas weren't going around calling people haole or telling them to go home. The royal family married with white people and obviously didn't care.. Now we have a bunch of confused asian locals using the word incorrectly lmao.

[@anthonywike8042]

@@jap808 amen

[@elizabethavelar8867]

Rest in power Queen! She was so amazing and powerful

[@mw3516405]

Intelligent person ! Very factual and concise !

[@ghostapulu7906]

The fact that she used Pakeha to describe the white people from nz tells me she really loves all of Polynesia and actually knows her shit. My Polynesian blood loves this woman

[@anthonywike8042]

my polynesian blood? you mean your ego?

[@lojfiojo4725]

@@anthonywike8042 No they means they’re polynesian blood, I’m not Polynesian but I assume the message this woman spreads hits at the core of all Polynesians because it has to do with them fighting for ownership of they’re land that was taken away from them by foreigners.

[@anthonywike8042]

@@lojfiojo4725 just cause you got somewhere first doesnt make it yours, land is owned by God, not humans. I dont like the government either but this has nothing to do with "white people". this type of a person is blinded by hate and selfish pride

[@lojfiojo4725]

@@anthonywike8042 You are using the same rhetoric missionaries and americans used to trick native Hawaiians into giving up their land. And I don’t like it when white people are blamed for everything but it does have something to do with white people if they are the ones who forced hawaii into becoming a state and stripped them of their culture.

[@lojfiojo4725]

@@anthonywike8042 And even if they are blinded by hate, id be justifiable. If you learned that a group of foreigners came to your islands, took your lands, stripped you of your language, bombed your island, reduced you into a minority and now out price you on your own native land. You’d be pretty pissed too.

[@PoetaGuerrera]

I love her so much. May she rest in Paradise. 💗

[@GaryHField]

Hawaiians look exactly like our native people, the ones without any foreign admixture. Resist, Austronesian brothers and sisters. Greetings from the Philippines. Aloha, Mabuhay.

[@mrfin02]

Greetings from Polynesia

[@josephinetracy1485]

Resist? You stole the Philippines from the Negritos!

[@averydavis4050]

I read her book, which I found fascinating. It sad she passed.

[@naturallymeii224]

Wow, she was one STRONG EDUCATED POWERFUL ✨WOMAN✨truly amazing

[@sandramorey2529]

Rest in Power, Haunani. I am so grateful for O'Brien for posting so many long and short videos so we can continue to learn from Haunani. Everyone should read the history of the only kingdom in the U.S. It's people have long suffered from the illegal overthrow of the monarchy with no say from the people.

[@tashs1052]

So good, thank you for sharing

[@cantaloupecoke57]

very bad

[@silvertavake5615]

@@cantaloupecoke57 it means foreigner. Which you are Bc you have no Polynesian ancestry.

[@rustatum2382]

Haunani Kay should be regarded as the MLK of Kanaka Maoli. Her work should be required reading for all Kanaka high school students.

[@sugafoot777]

Travel well, rest in power 🙏🏽❤️🕊️

[@ladiboygirl]

Rest in love .

[@CCJJ160Channels]

Intelligent, articulate, and absolutely gorgeous. She is the complete and total package.

[@josephinetracy1485]

She passed over every available Hawaiian man......... to marry a white man! Just how does that grab you?

[@Sooopa_Doopa]

I rewatch this video ever now and again and smile. Rest in Power Haunani-Kay Trask

[@victorias8865]

Wow, she’s amazing. I’m only just learning about her now and Hawaii.

[@leighcooperman1414]

damn, she so impressively told that interviewer to stop interrupting her and when the camera panned back to his face at the end of the video I busted up

[@Scorch1028]

At the root of the problem, is that "too few Hawaiians" actually got to "vote" on Hawaii becoming part of the United States.

[@davidrosen1915]

Trask: "Our language was officially banned. All Hawaiian language schools were closed." No they were not. This lie is repeated so much, but there is no evidence to support it. The facts are that Hawaiian language newspapers continued to exist until the late 1940s. Well before the overthrow, the Kingdom’s Board of Education had adopted a policy of restricting teaching and speaking in public schools to English. At the time of the overthrow, less than 3% of public school instruction was in the Hawaiian language. In 1896, the Republic of Hawaii did formalize that policy by enacting a law (Act 57) to make English the language of instruction in all public schools. However, under that law other languages, including Hawaiian, were expressly allowed to be taught as “second” languages. Then, in 1919 (after annexation), the Hawaii Territorial Legislature mandated that Hawaiian language be taught in all public schools, as an elective.

[@cinnamonstar808]

incredible! Haunani-Kay Trask; she is something else some people just represent the silence energy of their ancestors

[@mrscpjones16]

Young lady you are educating me. Thank you

[@PinkFZeppelin]

As a Hawaiian, it’s so sad how many Hawaiians think like this. I’m happy to be a mainlander and escape the racism.

[@mrscpjones16]

Young lady you are speaking truth to power.

[@bellatrixlestrange3603]

This is the energy we need to embody! #WeAreNotAmerican

[@lyn.8059]

I found her on tumblr. I'm so sad that I'm just hearing about this amazing woman now that she passed away. We need more people like her to educate (ignorant) americans.

[@paulmoore178]

She was a big time liar. Don’t believe her BS.

[@tori2dles]

@@paulmoore178 - Oh, stop. White folks don’t owe native peoples understanding or respect? Of course we do.

[@paulmoore178]

@@tori2dles people deserve respect based on their character, not the color of their skin, right?

[@yolo8283]

@@paulmoore178 lmao white people should practice what they preach because this is not what i see from any of y’all

[@paulmoore178]

@Haley what you fail to understand is how this “contemporary perspective” from “Hawaiians” ( they’re not Hawaiians, unless they’re part of the less than one percent of real Hawaiians present in the state, rather they’re people who the white man brought over to work on plantations- ironic, isn’t it, that those clowns are so ungrateful) came about. Union leaders, long ago, decided to pit workers against management and owners. All workers had brown eyes and black hair, regardless of their country of origin. The managers and owners of the plantations were white. Prior to this institutionalizing of racism, the white man was looked up to in the islands, beginning with Kamehameha, who absolutely could not have united the archipelago without the white man’s brains (Kamehameha immediately appointed two white men as governors upon conquest). Subsequently, many royal Hawaiian women married white men (including Liliuokalani), which is how most white people obtained large tracts of land (the Parker Ranch, which is 250,000 acres, was acquired this way). You have bought into the racist narrative. You should be ashamed of yourself.

[@judolata60]

I love her. So powerful. So passionate. So empowering.

[@joannehenry8273]

She was truly badass! Yes we need more plain spoken wise folks like her!

[@kalebmarkstrom]

She was an amazing warrior with a brilliant mind. The sword was razor sharp!!!

[@mwangaza6722]

Empowering. Amazing words. Wuuuh I love when education meets intelligence!

[@gwendolyngardner6037]

wait for it !

[@hualani6785]

R.I.P. Haunani.You are already missed.

[@islandbeast848]

NATIVE Real Blood Hawaiian Woman stating facts😎💯🙌👏👏👏🌴

[@philipvaldez7815]

Real blood but with a European last name?

[@silvertavake5615]

@@philipvaldez7815 thats colonization for you

[@josephinetracy1485]

@@silvertavake5615 ... and get this.... she was married to a WHITE man! She couldn't even get herself to crawl out've bed with a Haole!

[@GemStar1124]

I ❤ her. She's a true Polynesian warrior 🤙🏽🌺

[@karenkaloi6641]

E'O EA....HAWAIIAN BY BIRTH..AMERICAN BY FORCE

[@troyross5862]

🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾 Dropping Gems 💎. Rest Easy Beautiful Soul 🙌🏾🙌🏾

[@eawallace4354]

When I found out this wonderful truth-speaking wahine is no longer with us I was deeply saddened. She is absolutely right with what she said, like it or not. I hope there are many more native Hawaiian people who will carry on her work in speaking out and achieving change for the better for native Hawaiians, their culture and language I so come to admire and learn about.

[@kianakan96826]

What a powerful, incredibly smart person! Yes... rest in peace.

[@KathleenFrench]

Love hearing Haunani-Kay Trask speak. Thanks for posting this.

[@bmoney365]

wow so powerful!

[@4TheLoveOfThese2Eyes]

Yes! So powerfully racist!

[@silvertavake5615]

@@4TheLoveOfThese2Eyes it means foreigner so unless you have Polynesian ancestry then you are a foreigner in Hawaii. Haole.

[@4TheLoveOfThese2Eyes]

@@silvertavake5615 Oh I'm quite happy to be a white haole! Ahola! Hahaha!😄👣🤸‍♂️🤩👁👁

[@rushoproductions9195]

RIP HKT🌸

[@cochisenahuh7939]

Love you huanani!!! Rest in power!!!

[@dylanblack3279]

Some very good points. I feel that Hawaiian should have been taught alongside English and that indigenous Hawaiians and Asian residents of Hawaii have complete justification in using the word haole.

[@enrip4017]

👏 amazing 👏

[@shuyevekezo3427]

Powerful woman. 💪

[@eclecticsolidarity8585]

I love this!

[@rb49352]

Beautiful articulation

[@Schlabbeflicker]

Hawaiians voluntarily allowed mass-migration of foreigners, after which they became a minority in their own land. The Hawaiian MONARCHY was eventually overthrown by Hawaiian CITIZENS, and replaced by a Republic. Part of the "deal" of being an American citizen today is specifically that NOBODY has an "ethnic claim" to a territory within the United States. Every citizen has equal title and an equal right to exist without being lesser or greater than anyone else. Nobody is owed "deference" as elevated title-holders to land they don't personally own simply because they are the same race as a people who were displaced or defeated a century ago or more. I would also LOVE to hear a similar argument made that other ethnic slurs can't be considered "pejorative" simply because they are also "descriptive" within the eyes of the person using them. Honestly, this entire exercise is an attempt to secure some sense of superiority over other people based on nothing more than defunct titles and irredentist grievances.

[@lejohnleone6750]

You can be an ally for kanaka maoli. Join us brother, the kingdom is still alive. Which do you choose?

[@terrinceautry]

I wish i had the honor of learning at her feet. May she continue to watch over us as a beloved ancestor.

[@wiredforstereo]

Haoles owe us getting rid of their ignorance. I couldn't agree more. It's the bare minimum. I'm a haole, and when I visit Hawai'i, I understand that I'm a foreigner, that my culture is not dominant, that I should fit in not expect to be catered to. I attempt to pronounce Hawai'ian words correctly, respect Hawai'ian culture, and be a good citizen of the world. And none of that involves me whining about the word "haole." I can either be offended by that word, or I can recognize that I'm in a foreign culture (to my own) and that that culture has a label for people who look like me and come from where I come from.

[@FactsOnlyPlease.]

Wow! Eloquent & fluent!

[@MrWinstonSmith]

She said “Europe is a white place”.

[@josephinetracy1485]

She was married to a white man. For all of this rhetoric, she couldn't even manage to crawl out've a GD Haole's bed!! lol

[@momwifeylife9250]

God bless you Haunani🫶🏼 🌺

[@khunt1947]

👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿! Preach

[@josephinetracy1485]

She was married to a WHITE man, so you better change those hands to WHITE hands applauding. A WHITE man "colonized" her body every night!

[@dutchymon]

I remember visiting Hawaii in 1990, I snorkeled out to watch some local surfers where the waves were braking, two of the surfers started screaming towards me on their boards, hissing "get the f out of here Haole" with one of the natives furiously trying to ram the point of his surfboard into my skull, as I am swimming backwards. I dove down and swam away in another direction. Hearing HKT's proud anti haole disdain brings back the same unfriendly feelings of being assaulted by ignorant Hawaiian anti white racist surfers.

[@TheBeast-ux1pb]

💯💯💯💯

[@errolthomas9426]

This Polynesian sister is on point

[@josephinetracy1485]

Not really. She was married to a Haole. You're aware of that, right? She was married to a WHITE MAN right up to the end. She's was the biggest phony on two feet! She passed over every available Hawaiian man.... to marry a white man.

[@kealasimeona8450]

Yes🙌🏼🙌🏼

[@sinnombre-uc7pw]

What a queen. Rest in peace

[@abelzoni2138]

The old everybody is racists so I can too.

[@vp3970]

Pololei, Rest In Peace. I laff when she pronounces haole like the way haole do. Heowle

[@kdfooaijfea3asdf]

This is how you destroy. What an awesome speech.

[@sleeepyt3042]

Sovereignty for Hawai’i !

[@frankiesalazar3515]

Mr. Carter is always gonna be remembered as a jerk

[@BraddaDPaivaDboy]

maika’i loa kumu Haunani Trask

[@Roberto-Antonio]

This woman was a one of a kind warrior who spoke Truth from her heart! Continue the fight to regain your Sovereignty and Independence back from the United States!

[@ppg4667]

Yea like that's going to happen 😆

[@Roberto-Antonio]

@@ppg4667 People have to stand for what they believe in. The US invaded and unjustly Annexed the Kingdom of Hawaii.

[@Jahida360]

💓💓💓💓💓💓✊🏽 rest and power revolutionary Goddess so much love from Puerto Rico #Unity #HLVS

[@josephinetracy1485]

She was married to a WHITE man. You're aware of that, right? How can they have a revolution when their fearless leader can't even crawl out the enemies bed!!

[@DopeTaupe]

RIP Haunani-Kay Trask

[@ahnoji]

DANG! She told him.

[@ladymiss9466]

you go girl!!!

[@RixFPV]

A brilliant warrior. A Hawaiian treasure.

[@natively278]

💛Mihi atu kia koe whaea haunani💛

[@sarahmalan8946]

I Love Her.......Rest In Power......

[@jap808]

Trask surname definitely sounds Native Hawaiian lmao.

[@mrfin02]

Many Polynesians were given western names.

[@josephinetracy1485]

She was married to a white man. I know that may be hard to believe, but look it up.

[@BluePittsley]

She was a truly great woman, and she represents the spirit of American life better than any of us!! RIP!!

[@dakine4238]

I just think if we keep generalizing people according to their race it reinforces stereotypes. She's referring to certain policies by the US government. Not all "white" Americans even know about it or would endorse those policies. What about mixed folks?

[@Inlander502]

I’m half haole. I love this lady!😍