Centering Narratives of Beauty From Queer and Transgender Pacific Islanders to Disrupt U.S. Schooling

• In Event: "As We Have Always Done": Resurgence, Resistance, and Fostering Educational Lifeways for Collective Liberation

Abstract

This research project centers Oceanic Critical Theory (OceanCRT) and the knowledge of Queer and Transgender Pacific Islander (QTPI) communities to disrupt U.S. schooling. OceanCRT is an emerging theoretical framework with three main ideas articulated as ocean currents. This project specifically explores the first and main ocean current, which is “vā,” a relational space (Wendt, 1996). Vā, in the way that it is utilized in this paper is mostly aligned with the Samoan view of reality. The importance of vā is in its vagueness (Wendt, 1996). It is not an empty space to be filled in with something or space that separates things. Vā is a relational and contextual space that allows for meanings to shift according to who or what things are involved in this space. Webb-Binder (2009) states that vā is best understood when it is thought about holistically because it encompasses multiple times and places. It can also be thought of as a realm “where personal and cultural stories of identity through space and time are imparted” (p. 27). OceanCRT’s emphasis on the vā recognizes the importance of Oceanic Indigenous stories in highlighting how oppression and colonization have impacted the lives of QTPI children and Oceanic Indigenous communities. Simultaneously, stories can also offer silenced communities spaces of healing.

This paper conceptualizes a theoretical framework called Ocean Critical Race Theory (OceanCRT). Grounded in the lived experiences of Queer and/or Transgender Pacific Islander (QTPI) activists, OceanCRT builds upon three distinct theoretical frameworks: Queer Indigenous studies (Barker, 2017; Driskill, Finley, Gilley & Morgensen, 2011), Pacific studies (Hau‘ofa, 1993, 2008; Teaiwa, 2001 & 2010; Wendt, 1982; Wesley-Smith, 1995), and Critical Race Theory (Brayboy, 2006; Ladson-Billings, 1998; Solórzano & Yosso, 2002; Wright & Balutski, 2016). Used in isolation from each other, these frameworks do not help researchers and educators understand the unique experiences of Oceanians, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (NHPI) in the United States. Additionally, the lived experiences and unique knowledge of QTPI activists are often neglected when considering Oceanic populations, which contributes to normalizing heteronormative Oceanic Indigenous ideas of gender and sexuality (Barker, 2017; Driskill et al., 2011).

The findings from this project inclue a nuanced and deeper understanding of vā, as a relational space, by exploring how QTPIs relate to society in 1) K-12 spaces and 2) Queer and/or Pacific Islander spaces. For example, in regards to exploring vā as QTPIs in K-12 schooling spaces, the QTPI activists stories demonstrated the complicated relationship QTPIs have with relating to oppressive spaces like schools and navigating society. All QTPI activists, who were born and raised in Oceanic Indigenous communities and attended U.S. schools, spoke to the colonizing and oppressive environments they grew up in as queer and/or transgender Oceanians. Therefore, it becomes critical to the field of education to understand the complicated and underexplored identities of QTPIs and Oceanians in schools. The ultimate goal of OceanCRT is to continue addressing institutional and interpersonal oppression of Oceanians in order to contribute towards a more equitable and just world.

Author

• Jeremiah C Sataraka, California State University - Bakersfield