Product Details

• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Japanese American National Museum
• Run Time: 20 minutes
• ASIN: B000P5IWN2

Editorial Reviews

THE POLITICS OF PLATE LUNCH is a penetrating yet tender look beneath the "island paradise" to explore the inter-ethnic and multigenerational complexities of contemporary Hawaii. The plate lunch-a combination of food from different countries-is a metaphor for the rich ethnic diversity of Hawaii. While one person states, "We joke about being Portagee or Pake or Buddhahead" another remembers being called a "f-ing haole" and asking, "What's a haole?" Americans of Japanese ancestry have a dual legacy-as great civil libertarians who helped democratize Hawaii and later as part of the vast state bureaucracy. Neither the oppressed nor the oppressor, fourth and fifth generations are facing an increasingly complex environment. While standing on a triumphant past, how will they imagine the future?