How Ryan Zinke’s ‘Konnichiwa’ Reminds Us Of Snowflakes in Hawaii

by Glenn R. Geist

Was our Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke “perpetuating racial stereotypes” when he said Konnichiwa to Rep. Colleen Hanabusa (D-Hawaii)? She said as much. Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) said it was ‘juvenile and ‘flippant’ which may be true but that’s hardly equivalent to deliberate racism.

” this is precisely why Japanese Americans were treated as they were more than 75 years ago. It is racial stereotyping.” Tweeted Hanabusa yesterday afternoon. Inappropriate “when no one else was greeted in their ancestral language”

Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) followed with a “racism is not OK” as though there was no question but that such a comment certainly was that. I’m certainly puzzled at how the internment camps were established because someone said hello in Japanese but even with anti-Semitism on the rise again and will all the things I’ve been called by casual bigots in my life. it takes more to pull my trigger than a casual Shalom.

Saturday afternoon was, of course, when green-garbed and somewhat inebriated Southern citizens both known and unknown began to greet me in mock Irish jargon. I’m fairly sure none of them had any more Irish ancestry than I do, but I didn’t take offense. I’ve had many a Guinness after all and indeed things have changed a great deal for the Irish in America: and Greeks and Germans and Italians and Poles, but that’s obvious.

I’m curious though as to whether there is a Japanese “race,” although there are certainly haplogroups that might tie one to that island group. But that’s not the question, or not my question anyway. I would be surprised at any support for the assertion that nothing has changed since 1942 as regards negative feelings for those of Japanese ancestry. In fact, I could argue that at least a bit of that hostility had to do with an attack on our country by another country.

Yes, there is a movement to preserve some of these camps as monuments, (which I do support) as reminders of a highly questionable event in our past that should not be forgotten. As far as I know there has been no support for re-opening them, however, hence my question:  is this just more gross hyperbole and tactical sensitivity? Really if your name is Hanabusa is it worse than assuming Irish ancestry for an O’Neill and perhaps a “top of the mornin” in Saint Paddy’s day?  If so perhaps that “kiss me, I’m Irish” T-shirt I saw yesterday should be condemned as something or other – I’m not quite sure.

I have to admit that I’ve spoken greetings equivalent to “Hello” when entering a Chinese restaurant or Konnichiwa when being so greeted as a sushi place. Is that racial stereotyping?  Who knows any more?

I do recognize that we’ve become afraid of fulminating racial sensitivity and accusations and the maledictions that so often ensue. Often we can no longer  tell mockery and denigration from a simple “good day” and perhaps such comments can be disguised derision, but putting on the armor of hypersensitivity is a distraction from things like the question of “should we build a memorial.”

Accusations of racism can be as facile and hyperbolic as accusations of nefarious plots to undermine the president or to grab your guns or any of that Republican nonsense.

Isn’t the fact that such umbrage is being taken by a Senator or Representative, ipso facto a rebuttal to the assertion that nothing has changed in 75 years?

A less hysterical wit might have replied with “you don’t know me well enough for that sir”  or perhaps  “und ein guter Nachmittag für Sie, Herr Zinke” and walked away the winner, but no – instead we are reminded that Hawaii may be warm but there are still snowflakes.

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