From “Micronesian” to “Pacific Islander”:

The future of Pacific Island Languages in Hawai’i

CHEIRON McMAHILL, PhD.

Professor, Daito Bunka University.

Visiting Researcher, UH Hilo, 2013-14.

Language Ideologies……Make us believe in

and support the necessity and superiority of a single

American culture, identity, and language

…Glorify this idealized version of American English and American

culture, and stigmatize Pacific Islander languages and cultures

Language ideologies are not static or unitary; neither

are they natural or inevitable

Language ideologies can be countered; there is

always dissent. The survival of indigenous

and minority languages depends on counter-

ideological struggle.

Examples of scholars and writers who have influenced my thinking: Teun van Dijk,

Kathy Jetnil-Kijiner, Paolo Freire, bell hooks, Alistair Pennycook, Tove Skutnabb-

Kangas, Epeli Hau‘ofa, Hilde Heine, Joakim Peter, James W. Tollefson, Gunther Kress,

Norman Fairclough, Pierre Bourdieu, Michel Foucault, Jim Cummins, Gilles Deleuze,

Félix Guattari, Cherríe Moraga, Gloria E. Anzaldúa....

Dominant ideologies… are rooted in

attempts to legitimize colonialisation and

military occupation

1945-1986 Former “Japanese possessions” considered unable to govern themselves and in need of the U.S.’ guidance- entrusted to U.S. by United Nations as the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI).

66 to 70 atomic and hydrogen bombs tested in the “tiny” Marshall Islands. Six islands were vaporized by nuclear weapons and hundreds of people were irradiated [Salvador, 1999]. When divided amongst all concerned parties over the years since the first test, the U.S. government has paid on average $15 compensation per person in the Marshalls annually. Claims by non-Marshallese have been denied. *

In early 60s, U.S. decides to impose an American education system using “only English” and dispatching 100s of US teachers, to try and cultivate an administrative elite loyal to the U.S..

My effectiveness as a peace Corp volunteer in the TT in the 60's was great for me and some individuals who got educated, but it also supported American colonial goals and dependency (Severance ,

personal communication, 9/25/13)

*U.S. NUCLEAR TESTING ON

THE MARSHALL ISLANDS: 1946

TO 1958 Kim Skoog University of

Guam

http://www.uvu.edu/ethics/seac/US%20N

uclear%20Testing%20on%20the%20Mars

hal%20Islands.pdf

Dominant ideologies omit the U.S.’s pursuit

of its own interests

US signs Compact agreements with RMI, FSM in 1986 and Palau in 1994 for:

1) greater control and exclusive access to over a million square miles of the

Pacific, allowing for additional military and weapons testing at facilities like the

Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site on Kwajalein Atoll in the

Marshall Islands, a critical support for the US's Space Surveillance Network.

2) The right to "strategic denial" (exclusive territorial control), and use of military

sites like Kwajalein for decades even if economic assistance and other defense

provisions are not renegotiated.

RMI, FSM and Palau citizens receive:

1) the right to live permanently or come and go at will in the United States. As

legal residents (but not citizens), COFA residents can work, study, receive medical

treatment and are required to pay local, state and federal taxes.

Dominant ideologies shift the blame for the

U.S.’s broken promises to the victims

1996: The U.S. Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act excludes FAS citizens in U.S. from Medicaid benefits

Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003 – RMI and FSM citizens lose access to federal work study and loans 2009- Lingle

Administration took Micronesians off the rolls of Med-QUEST, Hawaii's Medicaid program

2011- Med-QUEST for FAS citizens was reinstated in January, after a lawsuit by Micronesians and their supporters.

Ignorant Unfairly pampered

Have to suffer

Victims Deficient

They have nothing.

They are destitute.

They lack English. They lack work ethics.

They get a free ride.

The US government gives them everything. We Hawaiians bear the burden.

Their islands were destroyed by the U.S. bomb tests. People here treat them like the Mexicans in California.

When I see a Micronesian coming, I think, “Here comes diabetes. Here comes high blood pressure.”

They’re going through what every group had to go through..

It’ll take several generations to assimilate them.

They’re so lucky to be able to come to this country without a visa.

Ungrateful

Dominant ideologies make it acceptable to voice racist opinions at the individual and local level

Testing bombs

on their home is

terrible and the

fact that

families are still

suffering from

medical

problems is

even worse. But

are we really

helping by

supporting

them? If

everything was

given to me for

free perhaps I'd

lose my drive to

learn and grow

as well.

The "You owe me" attitude. Let me ask

how many Micronesian families do you

have living in about 100 yard radius of you.

How many have taken things from your

yard or garage? How many harass older

people, pick on younger children or just

have a general lack of respect for anyone?

…anywhere in the world,

minorities who adapt to

their new home by

blending in to the local

scene will fare better. If I

am traveling in a foreign

country, I learn about the

customs of the place

where I am going,

including dress and

appearance.

The comments in balloons were posted by

Americans in response to an online Hawaii news

article criticizing Hawaii residents for

discriminating against “Micronesians.” Those in

boxes are from my research notes.

The internalization of dominant ideologies in

Hawai’i

“Submersion education” in “standard English,” both at

home and in the public schools; forced assimilation to an

idealized European-American culture

The marginalization of heritage languages and local

languages; the stigmatization of Hawai’ian creole as an

improper form of “broken English”

Shifting the center:

UHH as a hub of the Pacific Region 1971-72: UHH becomes a four-year college, with a

mission to be a hub for the Pacific Region. “Micronesians” considered central to this mission. TTPI citizens begin to attend in earnest, paying resident tuition.

Former Peace Corps volunteers steer Micronesians to UHH: “We believed Micronesians would adapt more easily

to life on the Big Island, and would experience less

culture shock.”

1972- TTPI students become eligible for federal financial

aid (grants, loans, work study)

1993- Former Chancellor Kormondy signs

articulation agreements to faciliate the transfer to

UHH from community colleges in the FSM and

RMI : “Building on our long-time experience with

students from Micronesia (the connection dating back to

Hilo’s Peace Corps days…)” …(Inouye & Kormondy, 2001:

153).

US and UHH support for Pacific Islander

students contested after COFA

Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003 – RMI and FSM citizens lose access to federal work study and loans

UH Board of Regents votes to change Pacific Islander students’ tuition to non-resident (same as other international students). Faculty, staff, students, protest.

A compromise rate of 150% of resident

tuition, called the “Pacific

Islander Exemption,”

is established.

Thanks to former vice-

Chancellor Ken Miser,

the Pacific Islander

Scholarship is

established and

automatically awarded

to those with status of

“Pacific Islander

Exempt”

In 2007

2004-UHH alumni and supporters form

Micronesians United- Big Island

Our Mission: To empower Micronesians for greater Self-

Reliance, and to Educate Micronesians and the Larger

Community about their Respective Cultures, Rights, and

Responsibilities.

Counter-ideologies valuing „other Pacific Islanders“

“Our sea of islands”(Epeli Hau‘ofa, 1994, 1998, 2000)

“despite the diversities of languages and cultures, there is

an ocean of connection among Islanders” (Jolly, M. 2007.

“Imagining Oceania: Indigenous and Foreign Representations of

a Sea of Islands.” The Contemporary Pacific 19 (2): 508-45.

The first voyage of the

Hokule’a

…until the day we

become united again

as a single people, as

we were once before;

before men separated

us with their imaginary

political boundaries of

today's Polynesia and

Micronesia… (quote attributed

to Pius “Mau” Piailug upon his death in

2010) July 29, 2010 in the Honolulu Star-

Advertiser

Establishment of Pacific Island Studies

Certificate at UHH, 1994

The University of Hawaii at Hilo also has the largest

Hawaiian student enrollment of any campus in the UH

system with very strong Hawaiian Studies and Hawaiian

language programs. When Hawaiian and

Micronesian students interact, they both find

their identities positively reinforced. That’s part

of the connection here (Severance, “The University of Hawaii in Hilo: A

Home Away From Home”, 1993).

Hawai’ian language and cultural revitalization: An

ideology countering American cultural assimilation

and English monolingualism

College of Hawai’ian Language established at UHH in 1997

The value of Pacific Islanders to

“campus diversity”

2007 “…campus diversity improves student learning; prepares students to work in multi-cultural organizations and in a global society; and improves teaching and mentoring (UHH Faculty and Staff Diversification Plan 2007-8).

2010: The PISC is created. Director from FSM is

hired. Staff, programs funding secured from 2012.

Culturally and linguistically tailored student

support services. 2012: PISC uses AANAPISI grant

to fund HELP and other on-

campus employment positions Relative to other administrative areas on campus, Division

of Student Affairs professionals are more reflective of the

student population in terms of ethnicity, gender and other

identities, thus serving as visible positive role models

(Strategic Planning & Implementation Team (SPIT) | Summary of SWOT Analysis, 2013).

We have a richly diverse student

population, with a unique blend

of local, mainland and

international students, all living

and learning together. We

recently ranked 6th nationwide

for campus diversity in U.S. News

and World Report (Why

Students Choose UH Hilo, 2013).

The goals of the Center include:

provide a welcoming, supportive and safe environment

facilitate the retention and graduation of Pacific Islanders

increase interaction and dialogue among students from different

cultures

support intercultural understanding and social justice in the

pursuit of a more just society

enable students, faculty and staff from all cultural backgrounds to

learn about Pacific peoples, histories, languages, cultures and

contemporary issues

•combat stereotypes and ethnocentrism

The Pacific Islander Student Center

(PISC)

The co-constructed narrative identity of

“EFFENG” My family has a long history with Hawai’i. I come

from a long line of educators. My grandfather

attended the East-West Center in the 60s. My

father attended UHH in the early 80s. But

financial limitations and family obligations

interfered with their graduating.

I am “Mortlockese” (i.e. from the outer islands of

Chuuk in the FSM), specifically I am from the

island of Lukunor. Each island has its own

language variety.

I am related to others and see my identity in

terms of my relation to my mother’s and father’s

clans. Family obligations are the most important

thing in my life, even more than school or work. If

my family needs me, I must be there for them.

Americans can and are adopted into our families

and cared for, too.

A member of an educated

family with long ties to Hawai’i

Surviving sorrow and loss

My family moved to Hawai’i when I was in intermediate school to

seek medical care to save my mother, who was dying of cancer. I believe my

mother’s cancer was caused by the atomic bomb testing in the Marshall

Islands. We all share the same air and the same ocean.

My mother asked us to stay on after she passed away, so we kids could get a

better education. I was homesick, and I cried everyday. But almost my whole

family had immigrated to the U.S. by that time.

I never thought of myself as “Chuukese” or “Micronesian” until

people called me that in Hawai’i. I saw many of my Micronesian friends drop

out of school. Many were sent back home. I was the only one of my friends

from intermediate school who graduated from high school on time.

I still speak in my native language everyday, but older people tell me I

have forgotten parts of my native tongue, such as the special language used

to speak to important people.

I have many friends at HCC from Yap, Marshall Islands, the Philippines, and so

on. I was put in ESL classes again though I had finished ESL in intermediate

school. I have gotten active with the Pacific Islander Student Center. I & my

friends enjoy fooling Americans about our ethnicities, as they cannot tell

Chuukese apart from other Micronesians.

I hope to be the first person in my family to actually graduate from a 4-year

university. I am trying my best not just for myself, but for my whole family, and

also for my deceased mother. Also to be a good example of “a Micronesian” in

order to counter negative stereotypes of Americans.

I consider myself a resident of Hawai’i, but I don’t want to become a U.S.

citizen; I want to keep my FSM passport, and return to Chuuk sometimes to

help my people. Some Americans tell me I am lucky to be here, and that

there is nothing for me in Chuuk, but that makes me angry. Sometimes I think

Americans simply cannot understand my feeling.

A Chuukese Resident of Hawai’i

One powerful way I identify myself is

as a bilingual singer. I enjoy singing

both English and Chuukese songs,

and composing songs in both

languages. Music is the most

important thing in my life. It allows

me to connect with people beyond

ethnicity and language. Music might

take me around the world someday.

A local talent & a future star

Language and power,

language and culture

Are Pacific Island languages neglected in terms of Skutnabb-Kangas 2009, and

in need of maintenance and development?

Example of Chuukese (itself made up of many varieties):

• Estimated 45,000 speakers

• Those in Chuuk State study in their native tongues only through the

fourth grade

• Fifth grade through university education in English

• English used as official language of the FSM

• Perhaps half of Chuukese now live outside the state of Chuuk, FSM

without any mother tongue support (including those here on the Big

Island)

• Adoption of English as language of communication in the home in the case

of marriage to a non-Chuukese or long residence abroad

What is the future of Pacific Island

languages in Hawai’i?

Small group discussions

Reports

Final questions, comments

How can the languages of Pacific Islanders in

Hawai’i be valued as resources? 1) Pacific Islander children in Hawai’i learn and use their first/heritage languages at home, at

church, and in community gatherings. However, there are no formal classes aimed at

maintaining or developing these languages in Hawai’i. Many 1.5 or second generation Pacific

Islander youth lack the literacy, vocabulary, command over registers, etc. necessary to use

their heritage languages at a professional level.

• Could these children ever get foreign language credit in public schools for developing their

first languages?

2) Progressive ELL teachers in certain public schools hire bilingual instructional assistants

from the various immigrant groups. UHH students also volunteer as tutors. However, these

assistants and tutors do not teach the children’s first languages, but only assist in the

children’s acquisition of English.

• Could these assistants and tutors be upgraded to heritage language and literacy teachers?

3) COFA nation educators presented on attempts to standardize, revitalize, develop curricula,

materials and methods for using indigenous languages in schools in the COFA nations at

the Stabilizing Indigenous Languages Symposium (SILS) 2014, held January 15-19 at UHH.

• Will these efforts have a wash-back effect on ex-pats in Hawai’i?

4) Since 2008, Pacific Islander students in the College of Hawai’ian Language can

get two semesters of credit for their native language, and can also further study

their native language in the “Certificate in Contemporary Indigenous

Multilingualism.”

“The basic idea comes from within the movement to revitalize and maintain the

Hawaiian language, even though it seems on the surface that the movement is all

about the Hawaiian language and culture” (Scott Saft, personal communication, Feb.

18, 2014).

• Will more Pacific Islander students find out about and take advantage of this

option?

• Will such UHH grads one day get inspired to start Pacific Islander heritage

language classes in Hilo?

5) Since 2000, charter schools have become legal in Hawai’i and have played an

important role in the development and support of effective Hawai’ian language

immersion programs.

• Could Pacific Islanders and those interested in them ever unite to found a charter

school in which children can be taught at least six to eight years in their

first/heritage language?

Final words

“The Bridge Poem”

I’ve had enough I’m sick of seeing and touching Both sides of things Sick of being the damn bridge for everybody

Nobody Can talk to anybody Without me Right? …

I do more translating Than the Gawdamn U.N.

Donna Kate Rushin