You can count on at least three things in Hawaii high school sports.
- Kahuku will be great in football or solid at the very least.
- There will be drama in the tiny North Shore football community, as evidenced by all the head coaches that were called upon to be in the lead role in the last decade (five in the six seasons from 2013 to 2018).
- The fans will come out in swarms and passion to watch their beloved Red Raiders.
But it’s those last two words that are causing a ripple now. Insensitive, some say, to Native Americans. Others say the name is no big deal and is actually a show of support to the native people of America who were once referred to as Indians.
This conflict is not new. The discussion has come up before. But this time it’s gaining more steam than ever.
The conflict is not germane to Kahuku, either. The national battle over the Redskins nickname in Washington, D.C., is at a high pitch right now, too.
As of 11:31 Thursday morning, 601 people have signed an online petition at change.org. They are in favor of discarding the Red Raiders nickname. A man by the name of Kainoa Kester started the petition. The intro to the petition reads as follows:
“Kahuku High’s current mascot is the “Red Raider”, a racist stereotype of the indigenous peoples of North America. Just like the NFL team named the “Washington Redskins” and the MLB team named the “Cleveland Indians”, the “Red Raider” term and mascot is racially derogatory and demeaning towards the indigenous peoples of North America. Kahuku High’s continued use of the mascot stems from roots of racist caricatures of indigenous North Americans and actively normalizes the use of racist stereotypes and racism in the school and the community. the school’s “Tomahawk Chop” chant at football games.
The best time to change the Kahuku High mascot was 70 years ago when it was first made official, but the second best time is today. The National Congress of American Indians has been working for years to remove racist mascots from schools. There is no place in this community for racism and racial stereotypes. Dr. Christina Kishimoto, Mr. Matt Ho, Dr. Donna Lindsey, the Hawai’i BOE, the Hawai’i DOE, and the Kahuku High Administration have the power to change Kahuku High’s mascot and close this racist chapter in the school’s history. We’re calling on you to help make this change happen.”
As expected, not everyone in Kahuku is supportive of eliminating the Red Raiders nickname and accompanying logo of a Native American. Far from it. According to sports reporter Paul Honda of Hawaii Prep World, a counter petition by Fatu Te’o-Tafiti had 991 signatures as of Wednesday on the change.org site. (Editor’s note: That petition was hard to find online, so if anyone out there knows of where it can be found, send a link in an email to [email protected]).
Kahuku is not the only school in Hawaii with the Red Raiders nickname. Kauai High also goes by that name. ‘Iolani used to do so, but dropped ‘Red’ a long time ago. So, what does everybody out there think? Drop the name? Or drop the ‘Red’? Keep it? Lots of people in internet comments have written that there are a lot more important issues out there now, especially with COVID-19 not only threatening lives all across the country but also threatening to cancel all of football all the way up to the NFL in 2020. But, to me, that is a diverting tactic. This issue is out there, like it or not. People feel passionate about it on both sides. Respect and discuss is the best way, in my opinion. One of the comments — by Jess Benioni-Naluai — called for honest discussion: “I don’t agree with his (Kester’s) method of approach. He could have chose to go a different route to open up dialogue on a very sensitive issue,” wrote Benioni-Naluai. “To go directly to change.org, especially during these tenuous political times, is definitely inviting a lot of toxic divisiveness. I hope he tries a different approach. Open up the conversation to the entire community. Do something that is inclusive rather than exclusive. Can’t fault someone for trying, though.”
Oh, and this is a BIG issue, imo. Why? Because this is Kahuku and everything is a little bigger in Kahuku.
