Ka Ulu Hoi

“He aha kou pakeneka Hawaiʻi?” Ua nīnau ʻia kākou āpau i kēia nīnau, a ʻo ka hapanui o kākou, ua nīnau aku nō i ia nīnau. Akā, aia kekahi mahuʻi ʻino e hūnā ʻia iho i loko o kēlā nīnau: ʻo ia hoʻi ka manaʻo, he helu, he pakeneka ko nā ōewe Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian genes) i loko o ka pūewe (genome) Hawaiʻi, a hiki nō ke hōʻike ʻia kēlā helu. Maopopo i ka hapanui o kākou ko kākou pakeneka ponoʻī, a maliʻa paha, ʻo ia nō ka mea e ʻike ai kākou iā kākou iho he Hawaiʻi, he lālā no ka lāhui Hawaiʻi. 

Akā he aha ia mea he “lāhui”? Wahi a kekahi poʻe, ʻo ia nō ka race. ʻAʻole loa pēlā ka manaʻoʻiʻo o kēia mea kākau, akā ʻo ia nō kekahi unuhina o lāhui wahi a Pukui a me Elbert. No ke aha lā? ʻIke ʻia kēia mea he race ma nā palapala like ʻole e laʻa nā palapala noi, nā palapala hānau, a me nā hōʻike lāhui hoʻi (ancestry test). Manaʻo pinepine ʻia he mea kūlohelohe ka race, a he kumu ʻiʻo kona i ke koko a me ka DNA o ke kanaka. Akā he mau kuhihewa kēia mau manaʻo ʻelua, no ka mea, ua huʻe ʻia ka pūewe kanaka holoʻokoʻa i ka makahiki 2003, a ua hōʻike ʻia ʻaʻole ʻokoʻa loa kākou a pau, a like loa ke 99.9% o ko kākou DNA. I loko o ka 0.1% i koe nā mea liʻiliʻi loa o nā ōewe e ʻokoʻa ai kākou, ʻo ia hoʻi nā ʻalele (allele) a me nā SNP (single nucleotide polymorphisms). I mea e wehewehe ai i ia mea he ʻalele a me he SNP, e aho kēia mea kākau e wehewehe i ia mea he ōewe. 

Kūkulu ʻia nā ōewe, nā gene, e ka DNA, a ʻo ka DNA ka A, G, T, a me C i hoʻomanaʻo ʻia paha mai ka papa kālaimeaola mai. He mau huna ka A, G, T, a me C no ka DNA, a he nucleotide ko lākou inoa haole. Ma muli o ke kino o ka DNA e ana ʻia ai nā A, G, T, a me C ma ke ʻano he paʻa—no ka mea e hoʻopili ka A i ke T, a pēlā ke G i ka C. No laila, kūkulu ʻia nā ōewe i nā huna kaulua DNA (DNA base pairs), a ʻekolu biliona mau huna kaulua DNA o ka pūewe kanaka, ka human genome. ʻOiai he māhele ʻuʻuku loa nā ōewe no ka pūewe—ma kahi o 1-2%—ʻo lākou nā kuhikuhi e kūkulu ai ke kino i nā mea kūpono ʻoi loa aku e ola ai, ʻo ia nō nā polokina (protein). He mau kuhikuhi hoʻi ke 98-99% i koe, akā ʻaʻole like ko lākou hua me ka polokina ma ka hana ʻana i ke kino. 

He ʻano ōewe ka ʻalele, akā ua loli kekahi māhele ona, no laila he ʻāhuli (mutation) ka ʻalele. ʻO ke kumu o ka ʻāhuli ʻana o nā ōewe, ʻo ia nō ka maʻa ʻana o nā kānaka i kahi o lākou e noho ana. No laila, ʻo nā ʻalele kai hōʻike i nā welo e like me ke ʻano o kou maka a i ʻole kou ʻili. A ʻo ka SNP, he māhele ʻo ia no nā ʻalele. Inā loli kekahi A i G ma ka pāʻālua (code) o kekahi ōewe, a inā ʻike ʻia hoʻi kēlā loli like i ka ōewe like o nā kānaka ʻē aʻe, he SNP kēlā G. He single nucleotide polymorphism ʻo ia. Ma muli o ka maʻa ʻana o nā kānaka i kahi e noho ana lākou, ʻike ʻia nā SNP like i nā kānaka e noho ana i kahi like. I kekahi manawa pili kēlā mau kānaka kekahi i kekahi, akā ʻaʻole pēlā i nā manawa āpau. 

ʻO nā ʻalele ke kumu e ʻokoʻa ai ko kekahi mau hiʻohiʻona kino, ʻokoʻa ko kekahi. No laila, ma kēlā 0.1% o ka DNA e ʻokoʻa ai kākou āpau, ma laila wale nō e helu ʻia ai nā ʻalele a me nā SNP e nā hōʻike lāhui i mea e ana ai i ko haʻi race. Like kēia ʻano hana i ke ana ʻana i ke kai ma o ke ana ʻana me ke kīʻaha hoʻokahi, ʻaʻole hiki. He lalau kēia, a eia ka hōʻike. I mea e helu ʻia ai kou race, ua haku ʻo AncestryDNA a me 23andMe i ia mea he kumu hoʻohālike, he reference frame, no kēlā me kēia race. ʻO ia ka mea e ana ʻia ai kou DNA, a kuhi ʻia ʻoe he lālā no kekahi race. Penei ia haku ʻana i ke kumu hoʻohālike: ʻimi ʻia kekahi pūʻulu kanaka e ʻike i ko lākou moʻokūʻauhau, a inā ua pili lākou i ko lākou lāhui ponoʻī wale nō, a laila e ʻāpono ʻia ko lākou DNA ma ke ʻano he kumu hoʻohālike no kēlā race a me ka ʻāina e noho ana kēlā pūʻulu. No laila, ua haku ʻia ke kumu hoʻohālike o Beretania ma ka loaʻa ʻana o nā pūewe o nā kānaka no Beretania wale nō. Akā, ʻaʻole nānā kēia ʻano hana i ka luku lāhui ʻana (genocide), no ka mea, kūkulu ʻia nā kumu hoʻohālike i ka DNA o ka poʻe e ola ana i kēia wā. No laila, inā luku ʻia kekahi poʻe ʻōiwi a hoʻohūnā ʻia ko lākou noho ʻana, a inā e ō ana nā kānaka nāna ka luku ma kēlā ʻāina, ʻo lākou, ka poʻe i luku, ka mea i ana ʻia he ʻōiwi no kēlā ʻāina. Ma kēia ʻano, kūkulu ʻia nā kumu hoʻohālike me he mea lā ua nalowale ʻē ka poʻe ʻōiwi. 

Ma hope o ka ʻohi ʻana i nā kumu hoʻohālike no kēlā me kēia race e ana ʻia ai kou DNA, a inā like kekahi o kou ʻalele a me kou SNP me ke kumu hoʻohālike o kekahi race, ʻōlelo ʻia, no kēlā race ʻoe. ʻO ka nui o nā mea i like me kēlā race, ʻo ia kou pakeneka. Akā pehea lā kēia hana no nā poʻe ʻōiwi? No ka mea, no nā ʻāina like ʻole mai ko kākou mau kūpuna. No nā Hawaiʻi, ʻōʻā ka hapanui o kākou me ka Pākē, Pukikī, Kepanī, Pilipino, Haole, a pēlā aku. A ma ka noʻonoʻo ʻana o nā hōʻike lāhui, aia wale nō a piha ke kanaka i ka lāhui hoʻokahi, e haku kūpono ʻia kekahi kumu hoʻohālike. No laila, e wae kēia mau hui, ʻo AncestryDNA a me 23andMe, i nā ōewe “ʻōiwi” mai loko mai o ka DNA o nā poʻe ʻōiwi e hoʻouna ai i kēia mau hui, a ma hope o ka wae ʻana i ia mau ōewe “ʻōiwi”, e hoʻokuʻi ʻia nā ōewe i hoʻokahi pūewe i mea e haku ai he kumu hoʻohālike ʻōiwi. Like kēia me ka hana a Frankenstein! ʻAʻole kēia he kanaka maoli, he real person, a ma ka hōkeo ʻikepili wale nō e ola ai kēia pūewe, ʻaʻole ma ka honua, ʻaʻole ma ke kaiāulu. 

No laila, ke hoʻouna ke Kanaka Hawaiʻi i kona DNA i kēia mau hui, e ana ʻia kona DNA i kēia pūewe “ʻōiwi” maoli ʻole, a mai kēlā ana ʻana mai e hōʻike ʻia ai kona pakeneka koko Hawaiʻi. Hilinaʻi ʻoe i kēia helu? ʻO kēia ka mea āu e ʻike ai i kou Hawaiʻi? He lalau kēia ʻepekema mai ke poʻo a ka hiʻu. E hoʻomanaʻo e nā makamaka heluhelu, mai kaulaʻi wale i ka iwi o nā kūpuna, a mai hoʻouna i kou DNA i kēia mau hui. ʻAʻohe pakeneka o ke koko Hawaiʻi, ʻo ka moʻokūʻauhau wale nō. Inā he Hawaiʻi kou mau kūpuna, he Hawaiʻi ʻoe. ʻO kēia ka mea kūpono āu e ʻike ai i kou Hawaiʻi, e like me ka manaʻo o ko kākou mau kūpuna. I ka manawa o ka hoʻopili ʻana o nā Hawaiʻi i nā Pākē a me nā lāhui ʻē aʻe, ʻaʻole i manaʻo nā kūpuna, he ala kēia e hoʻonalo ai i nā Hawaiʻi. ʻAʻole, ua manaʻo lākou he ala kēia e hoʻoulu lāhui ai.

© Momi Bachiller 2025