Native Hawaiians Prosper

August 8, 2008 --- The Grassroot Institute of Hawaii, a leading research and public policy think tank, has announced the release of a new study, Good News: Native Hawaiians Prosper by Dr. Harry Messenheimer. The study is based on data from the 2006 American Community Survey by the U.S. Census. The new report clearly illustrates that Native Hawaiians, in Hawaii and on the mainland, are as prosperous as other ethnic groups.

“Contrary to what some in our communities would have people believe, Native Hawaiians are doing quite well in America and certainly as well as others” said Messenheimer. “Native Hawaiians in Hawai’i may seem to have a somewhat higher percentage of those falling below the government-calculated poverty threshold. But the population of those identifying themselves as at least part Native Hawaiian contains 80% more non-income earning youngsters and proportionately fewer working age adults. Fewer working age adults supporting a much larger proportion of youngsters means more will fall below the poverty threshold absent differences in earnings.”

How about differences in earnings for Native Hawaiians? “Investigations by leading labor economists conclude that earnings are determined by skills,” said Messenheimer. “And you should not be surprised that increased schooling and experience on the job are the major contributors to skills that beget higher earnings. Taking into account the skill levels of Native Hawaiians, the study finds that their earnings are comparable to others’ earnings.”

“The ‘Good News’ study is very straight forward and counters the notion that Native Hawaiians are somehow not able to compete and succeed in America today or need special help to do so,” added GRIH President Jamie Story. The paper and its accompanying charts explain how differences in population characteristics affect prosperity in Hawai’i and the mainland.