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A newspaper poll showing most Hawaii residents believed their communities got along well prompted this May 1996 broadcast, in which four academic guests and a live studio audience of high school students examined that claim. Jonathan Okamura, a University of Hawaii ethnic studies researcher, argued that Hawaii's reputation for harmonious race relations obscured persistent inequities in power and economic opportunity, and that racism and institutional discrimination remained inadequately addressed. Peter Manicas, a philosopher at UH Mānoa who identified himself as a mainland haole, contended that earlier social peace had rested on passive acceptance of subordinate positions, and that the Hawaiian sovereignty movement expressed legitimate grievance rather than mere conflict. Davianna Pōmaikaʻi McGregor, a professor of ethnic studies, said Native Hawaiians were seeking to remedy longstanding economic disparities through self-governance and land repatriation. Attorney James Mee, also a studio guest, expressed concern that the sovereignty movement risked generating community backlash and deepening divisions if not pursued carefully. The question is whether Hawaii's ethnic diversity constitutes genuine equality or a surface calm built on unequal terms.
Transcript
Read or download the full transcript (.txt). Speaker labels were assigned automatically and may contain errors.
Companion newspaper commentaries
Commentaries by the guests, published in The Honolulu Advertiser around the broadcast.
