Source: Kyle Glenn on Unsplash
Last summer, my boyfriend at the time and I were glancing at the New York Times at a local coffee shop when we saw the feature, “If You Want to be Less Racist Move to Hawaii” and we both immediately laughed. Yes, Hawaii has one of the largest percentages of mixed race residents and it is by far the most racially diverse state in the U.S., but diversity does not mean the islands are spared from the disease of racism.
Diversity is not an immunity to racism. It just hides it better
We continued to read the article verbalizing all of our counterpoints, knowing by experience that Hawaii has deep seated racism as well. My boyfriend at that time wanted to get a moped to save on money but knew that because he was Filipino/Chamorro he would be constantly suspected of being a crack dealer. Not wanting to be pulled over all of the time because of racial stereotypes, he decided to continue to drive his gas guzzler of a truck instead.
The story of racism in Hawaii mirrors that of so many others. White businessmen coming in, oppressing and taking advantage of the people of the land that is not theirs, under the guise of “making things better” or “bringing religion.” Of course there is much more to the story, but what we need to look at, after the history lesson, is how racism is still prevalent in society and where it does the most damage, so we can begin the process of change. It’s been said before and will be said again, systemic racism is an issue of representation. Here on the islands, Native Hawaiians makeup less than 10% of the population yet are 40% of those incarcerated. They and neighboring Pacific Islanders also have higher percentages of people living on food stamps and generally live in communities segregated from wealthier white and East Asian residents. It boils down to the fact that they are over represented in the criminal justice system and underrepresented in education and employment opportunities.
Before American annexation, the Kingdom of Hawaii boasted a literacy rate that was almost universal amongst Hawaiians. The nation quickly progressed from a culture of oral heritage and transmission to a highly literate society, yet today the state boasts a problematic education system. Yes, there are dozens of highly acclaimed private schools but they are expensive and few are focused on Native Hawaiian’s education and preservation of culture. The esteemed Kamehameha schools offer many opportunities for Native Hawaiians, but those students who do not have the funds or intellectual capabilities have to resort to the flawed public school system, perpetuating a cycle of poor education and minimal opportunities
I’m in the education system, so my greatest impact, and most accessible place of action is in the classroom and talking with administration. It is important that more people get involved and start talking about numbers with administrations. Here in America many schools, especially at the collegiate level, have a specific “quota” of non-white students they have to have enrolled. It’s all about numbers and percentages. But what if we stopped looking at race as a numbers game and focused that same attention on providing opportunities, financially and academically, to communities in need so that they have an equal playing field in order to pursue education and careers. This would not only diversify college enrollment but it would be a change that started in the community, a place where lasting change can be fostered.
I truly believe that change comes from heartfelt communication and that is where I can personally use my position in education. I am continuously blown away by the wisdom of children. I never shy away from discussions about race in the classroom. Whether first graders or seniors, it is something that should be discussed and not ignored. Children are highly aware and are able to see things much more clearly than we give them credit for. So it is my responsibility to guide those discussions so that the next generation can grow into the change we are hoping to create.
Over the years I have taught various age groups and I have noticed that with younger students I rarely have to talk about inclusion based on appearance. Younger children could care less what someone looks like and they tend to include or exclude based off of words and actions alone. When a situation of exclusion arises, the student and I talk about what happened. We address the words or actions that were hurtful, frustrating, or annoying and come up with a plan to re-include the other student in the group or activity. Rarely, do we have to talk about differences. We discuss words and actions. The back and forth of inclusion and exclusion in a Kindergarten classroom might seem fickle to us, but there is some wisdom to be gained. They don’t care about your name, your income, your background, or ethnicity — they will judge you on your words and actions. What if businesses and colleges started doing this? What if they looked beyond the name on the resume, gender, sexual orientation, the status of their education, and where they are from and focused on what this person is doing and saying?
Middle schoolers and above, all of a sudden become hyper aware of appearance, status, and differences. This awareness, coupled with a tendency to be blunt, leads to interesting discussions of race, equality, and gender, especially in my history classroom. In fact, so much discussion arose in my first year teaching that I began structuring my history courses to focus on the role of marginalized societies in major historical events. This way, students still learned the major events, themes, and people, but they were able to view these events from a different perspective, rather than the white, male, lens through which history is generally taught. Approaching history this way did encourage conversations about understanding and challenging our own perspectives. Of course with high school students, I had to diffuse many insensitive comments, about race, gender, religion, and political views, but I never ignored them. After softening the tension with a bit of humor, we talked about differences and how inclusion comes from realizing that different is not inherently wrong or bad, it’s just different. Everyone has their own perspectives and inclusion comes from recognizing differences in worldview and validating them through discussion, learning, and humility.
These daily conversations inspired larger personal goals of fostering discussions of differences, equality, inclusion, and perspective in the classroom. Combining my love of teaching and my experience as a scholar of religion, I aim to continue my own education in order to create an Introduction to World Religions curriculum for Jr. High and High School, and see it integrated into school systems. Living in a globalized world, people need to be educated at a younger age about the beautiful differences that surround us and how to respond to them. Just imagine how much easier international business could become if those working already had a base knowledge of cultures and religions around the world. Even just introductory knowledge fosters clearer communication and respect. In society today, we quickly invalidate others because their beliefs don’t mirror our own. The key to change and integration comes not from ignoring difficult conversations but having them with humility, respect, and the intent to learn. And it is the lack of these three qualities that allows racism to continue even in the most diverse communities.
These are just a few ways I personally can take action to see change in my diverse community using my own job place and talents. That’s the key. Where can you personally, as an individual or a business naturally work towards equality where you are? It might start small, like not shying away from difficult conversations, or shopping and eating at only local businesses — but we all start somewhere. And from our starting point, we continue to move and continue to act and the force of change grows stronger. Be humble, be respectful, seek to learn new information, and encourage others to do the same.
By Hannah Stoltenberg, Teacher at St. Ann School
Follow Hannah on Medium: https://medium.com/@hstolty94
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