NATIVE HAWAIIAN VOICES
Image courtesy of CBR
Lilo & Stitch (2002)
The ideas and information for this section are attributed to Kuʻualoha Hoʻomanawanui, a Native Hawaiian scholar at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, and her article, "Moʻolelo as Social and Political Action."
Native Hawaiian Representation
Unlike most TV and films which cast minorities as sidekicks and background characters, Lilo and Stitch places Native Hawaiians at the forefront of the screen. However, Lilo and Stitch was written and produced by non-natives, who overlooked casting Native Hawaiian characters to play roles of Native Hawaiians in the movie, meaning the movie is still an American representation of Hawaiʻi.
Portrayal of Native Hawaiians
Originally, the storyline was set in Kansas but was changed to Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi because a Caucasian girl misidentifying an alien as a dog would seem humorous. Changing the location and race of the main character would be interpreted differently as it “speaks to the colonial trope of natives as stupid,” and suggests that Lilo is in need of domestication. This theme can be seen throughout the movie as Lilo and Nani are often visited by the Department of Social Services because of their strained relationship after their parents' death. This reoccuring stereotype that indigenous families are dysfunctional, poor, inferior, and in need of the government’s help and guidance is only emphasized and reinforced in Lilo and Stitch.
Depiction of Native Hawaiian Culture
Lilo and Stitch attempts to portray Native Hawaiian culture respectfully. In the film, the Department of Social Services decides Nani is unfit to care for her sister. Before Lilo’s departure, Nani sings “Aloha Oe,” a farewell song written by Hawaiʻi’s last monarch, Queen Liliʻuokalani. The representation of Native Hawaiian language, through a significant song, not only respects Hawaiian culture, but includes a taste of Hawaiian history.
The concept of “ʻohana,” however, is a central theme to the film and although its use was intended to share a Hawaiian value with the audience, the theme is instead appropriated. When the writers needed a way to redeem Stitch from bad to good, they learned about the concept of “ʻohana” from a tour guide who explained it as family that extends beyond immediate relatives. However, the concept of “ʻohana” has a deeper connection to Native Hawaiian culture.
“ʻOhana” is derived from the word ʻohā, meaning the kalo (taro corn) grown from an older root. Kalo and ʻohana are connected and can be tied to one of the most important legends in Hawaiian culture. Hoʻohōkūkalani, daughter of Wākea (sky father) and Papahānaumoku (earth mother), miscarried and buried her child. From the burial site, a kalo plant grew and was named Hāloanakalaukapalili. Hoʻohōkūkalani became pregnant again and named her child Hāloa after her first-born. Native Hawaiians believe they’re the younger siblings of the kalo plant, “born from [the] ʻāina [land], ‘ohana to kalo, and in extension, to all elements of nature within the Hawaiian environment.”
In Native Hawaiian culture, no individual is alone, and everything related to an individual is within the matrix of “‘ohana”. However, Lilo is portrayed as an individual who doesn’t have deep connections to community or family, and is ignored by the larger Hawaiian community who is absent in the film.
The legend of Hāloa also reminds Native Hawaiians to respect each other and their elders, which is ignored in the film as the audience witnesses Lilo’s lack of respect for her older sister. Instead of respecting the Native Hawaiian concept of “‘ohana,” it frames Lilo within the western context of individualism, which erodes the beauty of “‘ohana.”
The writers created the phrase, “ʻohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind or forgotten,” which is repeated often throughout the film. The phrase and central theme of the movie ignores the complexity of “ʻohana” to Native Hawaiian culture, and commercializing and profiting off it.