Racial Harmony Is Achievable: Lessons from the Kingdom of Hawai'i

Michael Haas

July 2016 · Routledge

About this eBook

Racial and social relations can become harmonious and serene in every country of the world. Racism can be eliminated. The Kingdom of Hawaiʽi during the nineteenth century reveals a history of responsive politicians, economic progress, environmental preservation, and serene race relations because of a cultural lifestyle that can be emulated. But not everything was rosy. Severe challenges emerged after the discovery of the Islands in 1778. The leaders and the people responded to various intrusions in an exemplary manner, while the same problems have provoked endless conflict and social disintegration that plague the world today.

Using analytical methods, this book recounts how the people of the Islands overcame civil wars, decimating diseases, ecosystem despoliation, religious conflicts, the uprooting of feudalism, worker exploitation, imperialist threats, coups, and a massive influx of new residents who quickly became acculturated. But the Kingdom of Hawaiʽi ended because of a flagrant violation of international law that calls out to be reversed.

The world needs to know how a society of Caucasians, Chinese, Japanese, Mexicans, Native Hawaiians, and others worked together to solve problems that seem intractable elsewhere. Until the secret is revealed, the world seems doomed to constant turbulence. Presenting a plan for social transformation, this book will be of key interest in the fields of political science, public affairs, sociology, and Hawaiian studies.

About the author

Michael Haas is an Emeritus Professor of Political Science at the University of Hawaiʽi, USA. He has also held many visiting positions at a number of USA- and UK-based universities. The author of more than fifty books, he was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.