What if the real legacy of Hawaiʻi’s plantation days isn’t just in our food, slang, or aloha shirts — but in our fight for solidarity?
In this episode we sit down with Dr. Kealani Cook, Associate Professor of History at UH West Oʻahu, for a mini-history lesson on how plantation-era Hawaiʻi shaped the cultural and political landscape we live in today. Dr. Cook traces his own journey — from a kid fascinated by Hawaiian history to a disillusioned teen tired of colonizer-driven narratives, and finally to a historian who now uses history as a tool to analyze power.
We dig into how racism was weaponized to divide immigrant laborers, and how, in response, powerful moments of cross-cultural union and resistance emerged. This episode is for anyone curious about what truly connects us here in Hawaiʻi — and why understanding our past is key to building a stronger future.
Here in Hawaiʻi will be back on KHON2 later this year but for now you can find the TV episodes here on this channel.
