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oa Waikīkī: A paradisiac–parasitic pacific paradise
- Source: Journal of Environmental Media, Volume 2, Issue s1, Nov 2021, p. 2.1 - 2.12
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- 20 Feb 2021
- 10 Jul 2021
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Abstract
Waikīkī is a world-renowned leisure destination; at least, that is the image flung vehemently around the world about Hawaiʻi. This framing of Hawaiʻi as paradisiac is parasitic, it eats away and denigrates the enduring relationship that Hawaiʻi the land and the people have. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen a shift in the way our home feels. Tourism, a self-proclaimed necessity of Hawaiʻi’s economy, was not only put on hold, it was essentially eliminated. Through this project I would like to present pre/post-colonialist modalities of Hawaiʻi, to contest and disarm this space densely affected by militourism. Hawaiʻi has been framed as a leisure destination first by colonialists and much later by hip hop music. My approach to contesting these projections is to refuse this notion and feature lines from songs, chants and prayers related to Waikīkī which are pre/postcolonial and have been influenced by colonialism through hip hop.