Kuleana and Commitment: Working Toward a Collaborative Hawaiian Archaeology by Kathleen L Kawelu (review)

Kathleen Kawelu, associate professor of anthropology at the University of Hawai‘i–Hilo, is to be commended for venturing into the sensitive terrain of relations between archaeologists in Hawai‘i and Kānaka Maoli (Native Hawaiians); her book, Kuleana and Commitment: Working Toward a Collaborative Hawaiian Archaeology, is an honest attempt to bridge cultural, racial, and historic chasms. Despite leaving a few questions unexplored, it succeeds admirably in raising issues that too often emerge only at heated community meetings related to particular land development projects, where they are compressed into sound bites for the evening news.

In the introduction, Kawelu divulges that the intent of the book is to explore power asymmetries related to cultural heritage management and the reasons Native Hawaiians are often critical of the practice of archaeology in Hawai‘i. The author discusses a few of the hot-button issues: the historic role played by a Western discipline in the subordination of Kānaka Maoli, the lack of meaningful consultation and communication with Kanaka Maoli communities, and the attitude of some archaeologists that “viewed ancient peoples as separate from contemporary descendants” (14). Anticipating her conclusion, Kawelu comments, “What we perceive as a vast divide between descendant communities and archaeologists does not exist and must not be perpetuated” (13). She also outlines the book’s methodology, an ethnographic study of the field of archaeology through a series of interviews with practicing archaeologists and Kanaka Maoli stakeholders.

A chapter on the history of archaeology in Hawai‘i reveals that the traditional kāhuna kuhikuhipu‘uone (priests responsible for the building of heiau [places of worship]) practiced a non-Western form of indigenous archaeology. However, the chapter principally covers the span of Western presence in the Islands, from missionary times to the present, and touches on the major institutions that now shape the profession: the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, the Department of Anthropology at the University of Hawai‘i–Mānoa, and the State Historic Preservation Office. Kawelu’s treatment delivers an excellent formal overview of each sector.

Like the chapter on the history of archaeology in Hawai‘i, the subsequent chapter on seven controversial projects serves as an excellent, if brief, overview of land and burial issues that sometimes took decades to resolve. The projects include the island of Kaho‘olawe; the h-3 freeway, the construction of the Ke‘eaumoku Street Walmart, Mōkapu, and the Kawaihae Cave Complex, all on the island of O‘ahu; Honokahua on Maui; and the Hōkūli‘a development in Kona on the island of Hawai‘i. Clearly not intended to be comprehensive accounts, her summaries of these projects will be valuable for students entering the field and serve nicely to reinforce subsequent chapters.

The book is primarily an ethno-graphic study of the field of archaeology itself as it is practiced in Hawai‘i. The following three chapters make up its core ethnographic portion. Eighty-nine people were interviewed, including Kanaka Maoli community members, Kanaka Maoli archaeologists, and non–Kanaka Maoli archaeologists. Kānaka Maoli are defined as either activist or non-activist, with a discussion of what factors went into making that distinction. Archaeologists are also divided into groups representing those working in government, cultural resource management, and academia. Research methodology, interview questions, and interview techniques are all laid out comprehensively, with specific background details offered for those anonymous interview subjects whose views are summarized or quoted.

Comments by Kanaka Maoli respondents affirm the very worst views of archaeologists as patronizing intruders extracting knowledge with little respect for individuals or communities. Some of the phrases relayed in the statements include terms such as “cultural voyeurism,” “maha‘oi” (rude), and “nīele” (plying with frivolous questions). In a telling contrast, one senior white archaeologist observes that he does not believe there are any difficulties between archaeology and Kānaka Maoli and comments that...