Possessing Polynesians

"Possessing Polynesians" by Maile Renee Arvin offers a critical analysis of the history of racialization of Polynesians by white Europeans and Americans. The author sheds light on how this racializing history is linked with settler colonialism across Polynesia, where white settlers legitimize their possession over both the land and people through a logic of possession through whiteness. While Polynesians have long contested these claims and cultural representations, their resistance has led to the regeneration of Indigenous forms of recognition. A must-read for anyone interested in the politics of race, colonialism, and indigenous struggles.