Being Mixed Race In Asia: Excerpt From A 2015 Article About The Japanese Term Hafu (with a video about Ariana Miyamoto, Miss Universe Japan 2015)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is the first post is an multi-part pancocojams series about being mixed race in Asia. Particular attention in this series is given to people who are Blasian (Black/Asian).

Click the Blasian tag and the hafu tag below for more posts in this series.

This post provides excerpts from an online article about the Japanese term "hafu" (meaning "half": "mixed ethnicity"/"racially mixed"). Information about Ariana Miyamoto, a hafu who was crowned Miss Universe Japan 2015, is included in this post along with a video of Ariana Miyamoto. Selected comments from that video's discussion thread are also included in this post.

The content of this post is presented for cultural and educational purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Special thanks to Ariana Miyamoto, and to the writer of this article and publisher of this video on YouTube.

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ARTICLE EXCERPT ABOUT THE JAPANESE TERM "HAFU"
From http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/9/9/hafu-in-japan-mixed-race.html Being ‘hafu’ in Japan: Mixed-race people face ridicule, rejection" by Roxana Saberi, September 9, 2015
"TOKYO — Ariana Miyamoto was born and raised in Japan and speaks fluent Japanese. But she said most people in her homeland see her as a foreigner.

“My appearance isn’t Asian,” she said, “[but] I think I’m very much Japanese on the inside.”

Miyamoto, 21, was born to a Japanese mother and an African-American sailor who left Japan when she was a child. In Japan she’s considered a hafu, or half-Japanese. Some people prefer the term daburu to signify double heritage, but Miyamoto said she’s not offended by the word hafu.

“I don't think the equivalent word for hafu exists overseas, but in Japan you need it to explain who you are,” she said.

In March she became the first half-black, half-Japanese woman to be named Miss Universe Japan. Many people in Japan cheered, tweeting messages such as “She represents Japan! Being hafu is irrelevant.”

But others complained on social media that she didn’t deserve the title.

“I don’t mean to discriminate,” one post read, “but I wonder how a hafu can represent Japan.”

Another person tweeted, “I didn’t know Miss Japan doesn’t have to be pure Japanese ... What a shock!”

“I ran for Miss Japan expecting some criticism, so it wasn’t such a big surprise for me,” Miyamoto said. “But of course, those kinds of comments don’t make me feel good, so I try my best to turn them into positive motivations.”

She said she has heard those kinds of comments since childhood, when she was constantly bullied and even called kuronbo, the Japanese equivalent of the N-word. Some children threw garbage at her or refused to swim in the same pool.

“I didn’t cope at all,” she said. “I didn’t tell my parents or my friends. I was the type to just keep it inside me.”

[...]

Hafu account for a small portion of Japan’s population. According to Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, approximately 36,000 children with a non-Japanese parent are born every year in the country, accounting for about 3 percent of births.

But with a rise in intermarriage, their numbers are growing.

“Over the last 20 years, there has been a doubling of the percentage of the population that’s foreigners,” said Jeff Kingston, the director of Asian studies at Temple University in Japan. “One out of 30 Japanese babies who are born has mixed parents.”

Hafu are making their mark in a country where fitting in is often preferred to sticking out, immigration is restricted to a trickle and the idea that all Japanese belong to the same race runs strong.

“There are many Japanese who believe in the purity of Japanese culture and traditions,” Kingston said, “and they have this imagined Yamato race … Everybody in the archipelago comes from this same blood pool, this same DNA. Now, anybody who seriously researches Japanese history knows that this is a myth.”

Some biracial Japanese are finding fame, such as Antony, a half-African-American, half-Japanese comedian and Saira Kunikida, an Italian-Japanese model advertising for a Japanese department store. She’s the face of a campaign called Japan Senses, which places importance on Japanese traditions and culture.

[...]

The most intermarriages in Japan are between Japanese men and women from other Asian countries, including China, the Philippines and South Korea, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

Hafu with a Korean or black parent tend to have the toughest time in Japan, according to Megumi Nishikura, a half-Japanese, half-Irish-American filmmaker who co-directed the 2013 documentary “Hafu.”

“There’s an unspoken racial hierarchy” inside and outside the hafu community, she said. “If you are half-white, you are considered to be the ideal hafu.” She added that she has heard some people in Japan refer to Asian-mixed Japanese as zanen, or disappointing, hafu.

[...]

Miyamoto said her country still has “a long way to go” to embrace diversity.

She is already making big strides for black hafu by challenging the widespread view that lighter skin is more beautiful.

And she has advice for other young people who feel they are not accepted because of their mixed-race background. “It’s OK to be who you are,” she said. “There isn’t another you out there, and it’s no fun when everybody’s the same.”

She added, “Believe in [yourselves] and don’t care too much about what other people say.”
-snip-
UPDATE: Added September 15, 2018
If I correctly understand what I've read on this subject, hafus (half Japanese people] born in Japan are automatically Japanese citizens. Here's some information about Japanese citizenship from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_nationality_law
"Japan is a strict[1] jus sanguinis state as opposed to jus soli state, meaning that it attributes citizenship by blood and not by location of birth. In practice, it can be by parentage and not by descent.[2] Article 2 of the Nationality Act provides three situations in which a person can become a Japanese national at birth:
1. When either parent is a Japanese national at the time of birth. If born abroad, the child must be registered within three months of birth or otherwise will have to live in Japan before the age of 20 and notify the MOJ.

2. When either parent[3] dies before the birth and is a Japanese national at the time of death (limited to fathers until 1985)

3. When the person is born on Japanese soil and both parents are unknown or stateless

A system for acquiring nationality by birth after birth is also available. If an unmarried Japanese father and non-Japanese mother have a child, the parents later marry, and the Japanese father acknowledges paternity, the child can acquire Japanese nationality, so long as the child has not reached the age of 20. Japanese nationality law effective from 1985 has been that if the parents are not married at the time of birth and the father has not acknowledged paternity while the child was still in the womb, the child will not acquire Japanese nationality.[4][5] However, Japan's Supreme Court ruled in 2008 that denying nationality to children born out of wedlock to foreign mothers is unconstitutional.[5]"...
-snip-
Click that link for more information on Japanese citizenship.

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INFORMATION ABOUT ARIANA MIYAMOTO
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariana_Miyamoto
"Ariana Mamiko Miyamoto (宮本・エリアナ・磨美子 Miyamoto Eriana Mamiko, born 12 May 1994 in Nagasaki) is a Japanese model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Japan 2015. She represented Japan at the Miss Universe 2015 pageant,[2] but after her victory she encountered some people disapproving of her win, mostly in the form of online social media, for not being of typical Japanese appearance; she is the first hāfu (multiracial) woman to be Miss Japan.[3][4]

Miyamoto was born to a Japanese mother and African American father, Bryant Stanfield, who was stationed at a United States Navy base in Sasebo.[5] Miyamoto's parents divorced when she was one year old.[6] She attended elementary school in Japan and, at age 13, emigrated to the United States to live with her father in Jacksonville, Arkansas, where she attended Jacksonville High School for two years. Upon return to her native Japan, she did not immediately complete high school, but worked odd jobs, including that of a bartender.[7][8][9][10][11]

In 2015, Miyamoto won the title of Miss Nagasaki and represented her prefecture at the Miss Universe Japan contest.[12][13]

Discrimination
Miyamoto was the only mixed-race girl in her class while growing up in Sasebo, Nagasaki.[14] Miyamoto recalled, "Whenever the teacher told us to hold hands, other children thought my black skin would rub off on them, so they said, 'Don't touch me'"[15] Some of her classmates in Sasebo, Nagasaki would say things like, "Don't swim in the same pool 'cause your skin will rub off on me."[16] Miyamoto was shunned due to her skin color and curly hair as she grew up in Japan.[17] Parents and classmates used the term kurombo (a racist expression) to refer to her.[17]

Miyamoto has decided to use her fame to help combat racial prejudice.[18] In 2015, Miyamoto said "I want to start a revolution. I can't change things overnight but in 100-200 years there will be very few pure Japanese left, so we have to start changing the way we think."[18]

Career
Miss Universe Japan 2015
On 12 March 2015, Miyamoto was crowned as Miss Universe Japan 2015 (Miss Japan 2015) at Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo...

Miss Universe 2015
As Miss Japan 2015, Miyamoto competed at the Miss Universe 2015 pageant[23] where she made it to the Top 10. Before Miyamoto's placement, Japan placed in the top 15 last in 2008 with Hiroko Mima."...

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SHOWCASE VIDEO: Miss Japan challenges the norm



Al Jazeera America, Published on Sep 28, 2015

Roxana Saberi spends a day with Ariana Miyamoto, who became the first half-black Japanese woman to be named Miss Japan.
-snip-
selected comments from this video's discussion thread, with numbers added for referencing purposes only;
1. Kamala Roxanne Burakom, 2016
"Well, I'm a hafu too. But my other half is Thai. So Japanese people can't really tell that I'm not pure Japanese. However that doesn't mean they won't distance me when they find out that I'm half Thai. My point is the racism in Japan does exist. I have witnessed it far too many times."

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REPLY
2. RyzeUp, 2018
"That’s not another race tho....."

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REPLY
3. jy jy, 2018
"RyzeUp
to outsiders its not another race but believe me even within asians themselves there is TONS of racism. non asians cant tell the difference between different asian groups but asians themselves can tell the difference. hell even amongst chinese theres racism between the north and the south. so even if physically thais and japanese are very similar it still doesnt matter . she will never be treated as a true japanese and will be treated like another hafu. if asians cant stand intermarraige between other asians what makes you think they would accept intermarriage between TOTALLY different races like blacks or even whites?(believe it or not there are plenty of instances where asian parents stopped their kids from marrying whites)"

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4. Raven Destari, 2016
"Comments section:

10% supporters

90% racists.


Lovely -.-
Who should care. If shes a citizen, she can enter and win. No arguement on that."

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REPLY
5. Philly Cheese Take, 2016
"+Raven Destari There are hundreds of thousands of Japanese women more beautiful and accomplished than her.

Miss Japan should be a Japanese woman, not a half-Japanese woman. If you seriously believe that diversity is what Japan "needs", just look at the US, and what diversity did there."

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REPLY
6. Raven Destari, 2016
"ChasingTruth TakingFlak I guess im looking at it differently because I am half-Japanese. No matter though, nobody is the most beautiful or accomplished and I do not believe that someone else was a better fit. It may help more half-Japanese be more confident with themselves as people and to help ignore the criticism that we recieve."
-snip-
"ChasingTruth Taking Flak" appears to be a former screen name for "Philly Cheese Take"

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REPLY
7. Philly Cheese Take, 2016
"+Raven Destari
How is no-one a better fit? She hasn't accomplished anything, she's done literally nothing, she didn't even finish high-school. She lived in the US for 3 years, and still doesn't speak English, not exactly an indicator of someone with drive and determination.

I have no problem with half-Japanese people in general, but to pretend like you represent Japan, or can represent Japan, when Japan has a very distinct culture and is very homogeneous, is laughable.

I fear that in not too long, no country, or land, or culture, will be immune to the nonsense that is multiculturalism. There will be no Japanese people, there will be no Europeans, there will be no Indians etc., and hence, no diversity. Everyone everywhere will look, speak, and act similarly. It will not happen in our lifetime, but I don't want to progress towards it."

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REPLY
[written in response to a comment about racial slurs being used in this particular sub-thread of this discussion]
8. Gieszkanne, 2016
"+Raven Destari

I didnt have seen any comment yet with the n word. Neither any racist comment. And you wrote 90%!
She just dont look Japanese. Also she lived form age 13 in the US what is concealed here!
And the Jury also wasnt Japanes (only two) .
How she can represent Japan?!

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REPLY
9. Areloe Fiezx, 2016
"+Gieszkanne Because she is half Japanese ethnically and fully Japanese nationally. Get over it."

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REPLY
10. Madison Hu, 2016
"So I guess if you're born in Japan-and from a Japanese woman, grew up speaking Japanese, are a Japanese citizen, have Japanese mannerisms, and have pride in your country, but are of mixed race, I guess that still doesn't mean you can represent Japan. Wow. Why is she considered half-black instead of half Japanese? She can't honestly say she's African, she has no roots there, probably has no idea about the culture. It's inside what counts, but nah, I guess we really all are just that shallow."

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REPLY
11. かんぐちあき, 2018
"Fuma Fu the ones making comments that she's half-black and taking this out of proportion are the "western" posters here on YT more than anything else. I don't say Japan has no racism, but the "problem" if anything is more that she is half "non-Japanese". So called "fully-Japanese" people will discriminate against any "haafu" as being "other" and not Japanese enough. Whether half black, white, Arab, etc don't really make that much difference (well, if you're half "other Asian" you might not be discriminated much because of your looks until they FIND OUT you're half something else) I myself being "haafu" growing up I in Japan living now in US see a LOT more racism against blacks (based on color) here than ever in Japan. Tho I'm not part black, I've been discriminated in US just for looking Hispanic, and have heard enough racial "color" comments rampant in US, compared to in Japan, comments are about "foreigners" as a whole (it's not really about "color"). On top of that, many Americans simply seem to believe they are not racist because they are multi cultural nation and Japan is racist because they are "single race". That's such an ignorant, simplistic, and juvenile way of looking at things."

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12. Ym Mm, 2016
"Nothing wrong with having a mixed raced Miss Japan. Majority of the Japanese people could care less about it. Hell, you always see mixed raced celebrities these days on Japanese tv and out in public. But the fact that she made a comment about wanting to start a revolution to make the ethnic Japanese people go extinct isn't going to make her any better. It's her stubborn self conscious attitude that's making it difficult for herself. She had the honor to become Miss Japan, yet all she talks about on media are how she wishes pure Japanese people would go extinct and how she thinks she was victimized of "bullying" due to her skin color. Her being mixed race doesn't mean anything, it's her ATTITUDE thats bring out the negativity to the public."

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REPLY
13. LookzA, 2016
"where did she say that all Japanese people should "go extinct"?"

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REPLY
14. Ym Mm, 2016
"+LookzA look it up. she said on a interview right after she was chosen" 

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15. JanellaMa, 2016
"To that comment "... I wonder how a hafu can represent Japan" and " I didn't know Ms. Japan doesn't have to be pure Japanese". I know this isn't Japan but Miss Philippines is a "Hafu" Filipino-German...? I'm Filipino, my nationality is American and I think I'm more American than Filipino, it's not a big deal because I still appreciate my heritage and still take part of my culture. I think it's okay it's just how the contestant can represent their country by being proud of who they are not by the color of their skin or the look of their face. I hope Japanese culture can accept the diversity; Not saying they don't but in the future."

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REPLY
16. Adriana Dor, 2016
"+JanellaMa Miss Philippines is biracial, not a hafu. There is a difference. Hafu means one that is half Japanese."

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REPLY
17. Stop Me, 2016
"Don't get it wrong. Being Hafu is not an issue, being African Hafu is. Simply because you inherit stereotypes and prejudices. As humans we can't look past physical appearance."

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18. jerramy, 2016
"Kudos to the judges who obviously chose Ms Universe Japan on her merits rather than some idea of ethnic purity. I will bet the haters wouldn't be displeased if Ms Australia was Asian because there are so many Asians in Australia now. It is only a matter of time before this kind of thing is happening world-wide with so many mixed race marriages."

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19. Linda Naranjo-Hayakawa, 2016
"I feel sorry for my son. Its very very sad to watch this video but at the same time- gives me hope that Japan ONE day will change.... it will take a long time for the mentality to change. My son is only 2 years old - haf Japanese/ Brazilian/ Irish/ French. I can only hope the government too will change their policy as for double citizenship. You can't ask someone - what are they the most? Japanese or.... what do they feel they are? its very hard question. I'm mix myself! I AM a citizen of the world above all."

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20. Makai Diy, 2016
"There is an equivalent word to "hafu" in western society. Since the days of slavery the word has been "mulatto."

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REPLY
21. VERLAN, 2016
"+Makai Diy no. the equivalent is "mixed", which is what people say to someone who has mixed heritage........"

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REPLY
22.jad3948, 2016
"Hafu is slang with a slight derogatory tone to it. "Mixed" doesn't convey that at all. That's a horrible translation"

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REPLY
23. whitetea, 2016
"+Makai Diy Isn't the equivalent Happa in "English" (It's actually a Hawaiian word.) I have never seen or heard the word "mulatto" outside of history books, but this is just my experience"

But I don't think Happa has the derogatory connotation, but then again I didn't think Hafu did either... It's like many Gaijin (foreigners) think "Gaijin" is slightly derogatory because it points out their difference but the Japanese don't see it as derogatory. What I mean is you can talk about someone who is lets say Irish in a good or bad way, but "Irish" itself isn't a bad term. The fact that they always refer to you as "Irish" might be annoying or grading tho

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REPLY
24. Thisbandsux, 2017
"yeah there is a word over sea for hafu, its called blasian, or even hapa, half asian half white"

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REPLY
25. MrRebuttal, 2016
"+Makai Diy WRONG! The better word for "Hafu"; is "Biracial". The word mulatto more specifically implies Black-white mixes where as biracial is a more broad term of mixed race individuals. Like this Half-Black, Half-Japanese lady."

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REPLY
26. john doe, 2017
"Actually, people like her are called BLASIAN. In fact, since her father was a Black American...that is exactly what she is... a Blasian American. And we love our blasians...especially pretty ones like her."

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27. Ykhraam, 2016
"her childhood reminds me of my childhood ~.~ growing up in a country thats 99.9% one race and you rly stand out"

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REPLY
28. tom11zz884, 2016
"+Ykhraam That has to be extremely rough, which is why most people that grow up that way develop identity crisis issues.


Learn about your past and culture to develop some self pride and racial pride."

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REPLY
29. かんぐちあき, 2018
"tom11zz884 well, I'm bi-racial and I didn't feel as much identity crisis growing up in Japan because I knew I belonged to the "haafu" group. We have an identity of our own in Japan we can belong to. But living here in the US for number of years now, I can understand how I WOULD have had an identity crisis if I grew up HERE. Because, here you have to either lose your cultural identity and become white-washed, or if you even have a drop of African blood in you, you are forced by one group to identify yourself as "black", "African-American" (and deny your white ancestry all together, even if that side of family was not "slave owners"), or they will think you are a sell-out, an "Oreo", etc. Why can't people identify themselves as being "mixed" and be proud?"

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30. MrEjidorie, 2016
"Japan is a highly homogeneous country, and supposed to be. So it might be very shocking and humiliating for many Japanese citizens that a woman with a foreign origin represents beautiful Japanese women. However, such phenomena are not unique in Japan. When an African woman was selected as a Miss Italy a few years ago, it provoked a strong backlash in Italian people."

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REPLY
31. Mori Soba, 2016
"+MrEjidorie Nope. It's actually not like that in Japan. Most Japanese aren't shocked at all to hear Ariana Miyamoto became the first half-black Japanese woman to be named Miss Japan. People just thought it's an unusual case and the main stream media didn't care much about her.

But It provoked a strong backlash when she commented on racism in Japan for foreign media. It seemed to many Japanese people like she was making this problem big and just wanted to be famous by racial problem topic."

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REPLY
32. MrEjidorie, 2016
"+Mori Soba Thank you for your reply. I think Ms.Ariana Miyamoto is very charming and intelligent, and she is deserved to be Miss Japan. Although her father is an Afro American, I`m quite sure that her heart is Japanese and she is really Yamato Nadeshiko (Japanese woman with all the traditional graces.). That`s why her remark about racism in Japan shocked and made me sad. Whether we like it or not, Japan is in a transitional period from highly homogenious society to more multiracial and multicultural nation. Judging from what`s going on in Europe, Japan should not accept huge number of immigrants right now, but we should be more generous to people with foreign origin as far as they respect our culture, language and Japanese society as a whole. I believe that Ms. Ariana Miyamoto is a full-fledged member of the Japanese family."

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REPLY
33. Mori Soba, 2016
"+MrEjidorie I feel sorry for Ariana Miyamoto having had tough childhood because of racial bullying. But bullying can happen to anybody anywhere for any reason. She may be too young to understand it.
As for multiculturalism I understand what you mean and I'm personally trying to judge any person not by his/her nationality or race, and hope many Japanese do so. Although I cannot agree with Japan as the nation should install the multiculturalism of immigration nations like US, Canada, Australia and Singapore. Each country has its ethnic identity and that should not be violated."

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34. Tiger Lily, 2016
"The "she doesn't look japanese" argument is so flawed. Just because you don't look like the average Japanese person doesn't mean you aren't Japanese. For example, my younger sister is Chamorro. Our mom, dad, grandpa, grandma, aunts, uncles, we are all Chamorro. My sister has fair skin and is constantly mistaken as white or korean. She looks nothing like my aunts and uncles who are the average Chamorro who is dark brown. But my sister is 100% chamorro, she just doesn't look it.

Does that mean my sister isn't chamorro? Of course not. Appearance doesn't equal race. Black people with complete vitiligo don't look black, but they are most definitely black. Same with Ariana. She was born, raised, has japanese blood, speaks japanese. She is Japanese AND Black. And people should acknowledge her Japanese side just as much as her Black side.
-snip-
Here's information about Chamorro from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chamorro_people
"The Chamorro people are the indigenous people of the Mariana Islands; politically divided between the United States territory of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Micronesia."...

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35. Marie Ji, 2017
"It's a common misconception that mixed race people are more accepted in America. My whole life people told me to choose one race. As if you can't embrace more than one. I've been teased about my family and our genetic features. So, while younger people don't tend to care, older people definitely have issues."

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REPLY
36. JTL, 2017
"Absolutely true. I feel this struggle deeply. Clearly we have a long way to go still, just like the rest of the world."

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37. jhunt5578, 2017
"It's so depressing how people in the comments are supporting Ariana who suffered from racism, by being racist to Japanese people."

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38. AgitoFang, 2017
"Of course some backlash are from an older generation. There are plenty of hafu celebrities in Japan now that people idolize simply because they are hafu and have foreign features. Not even because they are specifically talented. I find it very hypocritical if they can call those idols Japanese and not Ariana. It could also be because she is half black, and they prefer hafus with white/european features. It's ridiculous."

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39. MrEjidorie, 2017
"I identify myself as a Japanese nationalist. But irrespective of ethnic, religious or cultural backgrounds, ethnic people should be accepted as full-fledged members of the Japanese community as far as they are loyal to Japan. Through her interview, I`m fully convinced that Ms. Ariana Miyamoto loves Japan and people. I believe that she is a "Yamato Nadeshiko" an ideal Japanese woman with all the traditional graces. So she belongs to Japan, and she is our great assets! I also deeply impressed that Ms. Ariana Miyamoto always keeps her smile, maintains a positive attitude and expresses her love for Japan and Japanese people in spite that she has been discriminated because of her ethnic background."

**
40. Quéren Akemi, 2017
"Being hafu is already difficult, when it is mixed black think it is not easy. I'm mixed I suffered I still suffer a little."

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41. hayward hightower, 2017
""In Japan ,we have a long way to go" - too true, a statement, if ever there was, in regards to diversity!!!"

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42. Kalai Reed, 2017
"No Japanese don't hate mix people.They hate Japenese people they're mix with black"

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43. Jessica Williams, 2018
"Bigotry is a world wide thing, not just an American thing. Very sad. This young lady is absolutely gorgeous and seems to have a beautiful and gentle soul. Why would anyone mistreat a person like her?"

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44. Ursa chan, 2018
"How come the Japanese media is not making her famous?
It is 2018 and thanks to the internet I got to know about her. Brave girl!

I live in Japan , I have two daughters , “hafu” and I can not believe that people minds in this country still almost the same than 41 years ago.
My kids have their share of suffering of been “ hafu” but I never give up and support them with all my heart, I made them confident, but I was always scare because I knew about other “ hafu” committing suicide because the pressure and discrimination was really bad.
When my youngest daughter was 13 years old, without telling me, change the color of her hair from light brown to very dark black! Of course I got really upset, then crying she told me that the teacher in charge of her class has demand that she must have black hair, because was the rule of the school. This happen 20 years ago. I really want to put them in jail, for me, what they did to my daughter at 13 years old, was criminal. And we let them know and of course we try to get him and the principal fired. They were just move to another school...."

**
45. #pandas4rlife, 2018
"I am Japanese, Hawaiian, Fillipino, and many other things. I am very insecure about having so many different racial backgrounds. I feel very ashamed of myself often. That is why this lady is inspiring for me. I also have dark skin which is something I am insecure about. I love the message that she gives in the end. Very inspiring and it helps me a lot."

**
46. Matthew Kaopio, 2018
"In Hawaii, we have a term "hapa" such as seen in the word "hapa haole "which was half/Hawaiian and half/Caucasian. Hapahaole were considered beautiful and appreciated in both cultures. That's why so many people in Hawaii are "mixed-race" or ethnically diverse. This girl is beautiful, both inside and out. Come to Hawaii, Ariana! We love you just as you are."

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47. Toyang Albina, 2018
"When she said, "Be happy of who you are, there's no other other you out there and it's no fun when everyone is the same..." Burn haters burn lol"

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48. Diabetic One, 2018
"Can someone explain why Naomi Osaka is accepted and Ariana is not? One represents Japanese, athletics and the other represents Japanese Beauty. What is the difference they are both Hafu and, they both have African fathers and Japanese mothers."
-snip-
Naomi Osaka was born in Osaka, Japan to a Japanese mother and a Haitian father. She won the 2018 tennis World Cup against Serena Williams.

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