Essay prewriting

• Why is it difficult to answer accurately “Exactly who is a Native Hawaiian?” Why does the answer to the question matter – both in everyday life in Hawaii and to us as we think about the realities of social identities?

It is difficult to know who is a native Hawaiian because there is so much mixing so there is no distinction between the different races. These people are not distinct because they do not fit into a certain group.

What is a “community of descent?” In what ways is a “community of descent” different from an “ethnic group” or “racial group?” Pull together and explain material from Olson’s text to define these terms and explain why Olson thinks the concept of “community of descent” is a useful way to think about mixed ancestry