Kanaka 'Ōiwi Critical Race Theory: Historical and Cultural Ecological Understanding of Kanaka 'Ōiwi Education

Abstract

The effects of colonization on Kanaka 'Ōiwi, the Indigenous people of Hawai'i, have led to the systematic distancing of Kanaka 'Ōiwi from their cultural ways of knowing, replacing it, instead with eurocentric standards of education that adversely impact Kanaka 'Ōiwi wellbeing. In this article, I provide an overview of the history of colonization of Kanaka 'Ōiwi through a critical race lens. Critical Race Theory and TribalCrit are reviewed in relation to their theoretical relevance to Kanaka 'Ōiwi epistemologies. A synthesis model of an adapted CRT and TribalCrit framework called, Kanaka'ŌiwiCrit is presented and discussed within the context of education as a space for resistance.