Being hapa

A panel will discuss cultural
identities of blended races

Karin Watanabe, 29, grew up around Japanese-speaking grandparents, eating Japanese food and learning Japanese customs.

But unlike her three older fourth-generation siblings, who inherited dark hair and complexions, Watanabe has the blond hair and green eyes of her mother's Midwestern side of the family, her German half.

'Growing up Hapa' Panel discussion: 5:30 to 7 p.m. tomorrow Place: Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii, 2454 S. Beretania St. Admission: Free Call: 945-7633

She is proof of the cliché that you can't judge a book by its cover.

"I identify with being Japanese. The Japanese side of the family all lived here," said Watanabe, a Punahou graduate who grew up in Honolulu. "My grandparents took us to Japan. All the cousins knew each other. The Japanese side of my family did respect my mom and other members of family who were white. (And) I love my mom and her family, but I don't know that much about the German side. I'm proud of being Japanese."

Not that anyone ever asked Watanabe to choose sides.

"Race isn't as big of a deal as it used to be. The world is so much more diverse," said Watanabe, program coordinator at the Ewa Emergency Shelter with Hale Kipa.

But race is still a subject that many regard as taboo, and those who are multiethnic -- still considered exotic in some areas of the country -- can face confusion in identifying with one or another based on society's positive or negative preconceptions.

To shed light on the subject, Watanabe will be one of four panelists who will share their experiences "Growing up Hapa" -- meaning of half or, increasingly, mixed heritage -- during a discussion tomorrow.

Participants should be prepared for small-group discussions focused on parents raising hapa children, "because nearly one-third of Japanese Americans in Hawaii are of blended ethnicities," said Brandon Hayashi, JCCH programs director. The aim of the event is to discuss how this continuing change will affect the evolving Japanese-American identity.

"Being Hapa" is the third forum in the JCCH program "Japanese American Social Issues Series in Hawaii," which debuted in 2004. The series is intended to generate discussion on contemporary issues of concern and interest to the Japanese-American community.

"This forum will generate conversation that is relevant not only to those who are hapa by birth, but also those whose lives are touched by hapa issues," said Christine Yano, the moderator and an associate professor of anthropology for the University of Hawaii. "I figure that is just about everyone in Hawaii."

"The biggest misconception is that people who are hapa are mixed up, that you don't realize who you are. I know that I'm Filipino and Japanese," said Randy Gomabon Jr., 28, a third-generation Filipino and fourth-generation Japanese. "(But there's a fear that hapas) won't have either culture."

Some panelists, like Watanabe and Gomabon, grew up on Oahu; others were born and raised on the mainland before calling Hawaii home. But all four share the common bond of being hapa, and in this case all four panelists are part Japanese.

Gomabon sees his mixed-race heritage as a plus but, because of his experiences in inadvertently playing down his Filipino heritage, understands how others might feel confused in their racial identities if they cannot filter through stereotypes or lack confidence as individuals.

"Being hapa is understood in Hawaii," he said, "but certain cultures don't get talked about in school, like Micronesian cultures. Identity is then a challenge -- knowing where you belong."

He added that older community members often worry that future generations will not retain their ancestors' cultures.

"Sometimes kids don't want to learn their grandparents' languages or about their cultures, so there isn't a connection between (generations). The (worry) is that we become so diverse, we don't feel a connection with our grandparents," he said.

Growing up in Pearl City, which is predominantly Japanese American, Gomabon respects both cultures but identifies more with his Japanese roots.

"I lost contact with the Filipino side," he said. "Between my two families, there was a big disparity between occupation and education."

On the Japanese side were college graduates and good jobs, he said. "Also, my friends were Japanese, and I took Japanese as a language because of my friends and because I thought it was a lucrative language. I was influenced by the community and friends."

He learned to accept his Filipino heritage after minoring in Asian studies at UH and through his work at the Hawaii Filipino Chronicle. But he said he learned negative stereotypes early in school or in joking with non-Filipino friends.

As a technology teacher at Farrington High School and a technology coordinator for the Center for Second Language Research at UH, he learned that many of the stereotypes ingrained among his peers still exist among today's high school students.

"The Filipino side is hard-working," he said, embarrassed about his old notions. "(But) I never heard anything negative about being Japanese; I heard a lot about Filipinos. There were jokes about Filipino cooking. I had stereotypes about Filipinos.

"They don't teach you about classism in school. But that's where kids learn it most. School is a very influential place. We need to talk about class. Parents need to be more honest about why there are stereotypes, why there's classism, sexism. If you don't teach kids, they believe stereotypes."

For Watanabe, how others saw her affected the way she saw herself while growing up. She often wished she had more prominent Asian features.

"You did have to explain yourself, you couldn't just be," Watanabe said. "I didn't look like the way I felt.

"In college, I joined a student-of-color association, and I was allowed in because I had checked off Japanese on my application. But I got some looks like, 'What are you doing here?' But they let me stay.

"I do appreciate that (later) in school on the mainland, after I explained myself, people would see me according to how I chose to see myself and recognize me as I wanted to be, instead of putting me in some type of box.

"You can be lots of different things. There is a need for people who are different. We can't make stereotypes or assumptions. We all have to be really careful."