Toward a Kanaka ʻŌiwi racial identity model for a contemporary multiracial world

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper uses a Kanaka ʻŌiwi (Native Hawaiian) Critical Race Theory (KanakaʻŌiwiCrit) framework to conceptualize the relationship between identity and interracial and intraracial relations among multiracial Kanaka ʻŌiwi youth. KanakaʻŌiwiCrit is defined then applied to review research on minority racial identity models and Indigenous identity constructs. To address the gap in literature on the racialization of Kanaka ʻŌiwi youth, a three-dimensional model that explicates how contemporary racial identities form under the social, cultural, and political conditions of multiracial societies afflicted by racism is proposed. Using composite, data-driven narratives, the model conceptualizes four major Kanaka ʻŌiwi racial identity profiles: a state of hōʻole (denial), a state of hoʻokaʻawale (disconnect), a state of huikau (confusion), and a state of mana (power). The significance of geographic contexts in racial identity formation for multiracial Kanaka ʻŌiwi youth living in Hawai‘i versus the global diaspora is also explored before concluding with future paths.