Hawai‘i beyond Tropical Overtourism: Decolonial Perspectives on Jasmin ‘Iolani Hakes’ Hula

This paper examines Jasmin ‘Iolani Hakes’ debut novel Hula (2023) as a decolonial critique of tropical overtourism, land dispossession, and cultural commodification in Hawai‘i. The study investigates how the novel, which follows a strong heritage of Kānaka Maoli writing, reimagines Native Hawaiian experiences within the colonial matrix of power, and reveals Indigenous strategies of resistance and resilience. The paper examines the ways Hula depicts tropical tourism as a continuation of colonial violence, and how it foregrounds Indigenous epistemologies to counter the tourist imaginary of Hawai‘i as tropical “paradise.” It does this through a close textual analysis of Hula, cross-referenced with Aníbal Quijano’s (2000) concept of the “coloniality of power,” Walter Mignolo’s (2009) theory of “epistemic disobedience,” and ecocritical insights from Rob Nixon. The findings reveal that the novel portrays tropical tourism as a subtle extension of colonial conquest: erasing Native presence and accelerating environmental degradation. The novel simultaneously demonstrates epistemic disobedience through the preservation of authentic hula (dance form), communal storytelling, and activism against military and corporate encroachments. The study concludes that the novel disrupts the normalizing of tropical tourism by centering Native Hawaiian agency, and reframing Hawai‘i not as a consumable paradise but as a contested homeland where cultural resurgence and sovereignty remain vital.