Local Hawaii: White Animosity in the Multi-Ethnic Society

Abstract

White animosity exists in Hawaii, a multi-ethnic society where whites are the most identifiable out-group. The history of Hawaii is marked by colonization and Americanization, responsible for the import of numerous ethnicities to the islands and combining them under a single American culture different from their origin. The acculturation of different ethnicities succeeding this process has caused conflict between ethnic groups and the white colonizers. Today, Hawaii is a land different from all others due to its complex diversity of ethnic cultures and identities. The assimilation of ethnic identities into one united American group has developed since colonization but division and animosity between ethnicities still exists, most recognizably though the identification of a White out-group and a 'Local' in-group. The formation of ethnic identity is analyzed using five models including; assimilation, acculturation, alternation, multi-cultural, and the fusion model.