Spring 2009 - Issue 5

The Silversword: Home > Op-Ed > Micronesian—and Proud

Micronesian—and Proud

Russell Thoulag, Op-Ed Editor

If you already know which islands are part of Micronesia, read no further. If you already know what I mean when I say I am Micronesian, read no further. If you don’t know any of these, this one’s for you.

I’m very proud to call myself a Micronesian. However, in the four years that I’ve been here at Chaminade, it has come to my attention a lot of people don’t know where Micronesia is. Not only that, but they aren’t aware of the different nations that are a part of the region.

It’s frustrating to have to explain the unique structure to someone over and over. Saying that Micronesia is around Guam isn’t enough for me anymore either. Even one of my friends experiences this:

“People ask me where I’m from, I say Micronesia. When they ask where that is, I start listing islands. It’s not until I reach Guam that they know, “ says student Heinrich Hainrickson.

It’s even more frustrating when the people who are actually Micronesian, don’t know or don’t think they are Micronesians. 

There are many misunderstandings with being called a Micronesian and calling oneself a Micronesian.

I have a chance to reach a wide audience here. So allow me to impart some information.

Micronesia is a huge region in the Northern Pacific Ocean, spanning about 300 million square miles. The combined land area of its 2,000 islands is about 1,055 square miles.

Micronesia is today divided into eight nation-states and territories. From east to west, they are Kiribati Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Wake Island, the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Guam, the Common Wealth of the Marianas, and the Republic of Palau.

These political identities are made up of many islands.  They all have unique cultures and languages. The FSM is comprised of four states, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei, and Kosrae. So even within a nation there are unique cultures and languages.

Even though there are different ethnicities, they are all part of the Micronesian culture.  Much like Hawaiians, Tahitians, and Samoans are Polynesian, Palauans, Chamorros, and Marshallese are Micronesian.

A lot of confusion is caused by the name FSM. FSM is often referred to as Micronesia. As people from the USA are called Americans, people from the FSM are often called Micronesian. This, in a way, causes a discrepancy, because a Palauan isn’t really a Micronesian.

This issue is compounded by the fact that some people from the FSM would rather identify themselves as Pohnpeian or Chuukese; not from their nation, but their own state.

Some islands don’t want to consider themselves Micronesians.

“Even though Saipan and Guam are geographically in Micronesia, some Chamorros don’t think they are Micronesian. Maybe they think that’s just the FSM, but they consider themselves different,” said Chamorro student Jenise Takai.

I have heard a person say, “I’m Palauan, not Micronesian.”

Is this correct? No. For better or worse we’re all from the region known as Micronesia. If people want to differentiate themselves from the FSM, why not say,  “I’m from Palau, not the FSM.”

When I call myself Micronesian, I mean to say that I am of the Micronesian culture, and then that I am from the FSM. I feel a sense of belonging to the larger group. But it’s hard to belong when the others don’t consider themselves Micronesian.

I’ve recently read a poem “The Micronesian Question” by Emelihter Kihleng, a Micronesian poet from Pohnpei. The poem can be found here: http://www.tinfishpress.com/tinfishnet2/kihleng.html In it, she addresses being called Micronesians, and the issues many of us face in our diaspora from our islands. She wrote Micronesians “do not want to be recognized as one.” Having read this I felt like calling myself a Micronesian was perhaps wrong or inappropriate. Why be part of something that doesn’t want to be?

There are people who want to be called Micronesians; who are proud to be called Micronesians. The Micronesian Club here at Chaminade represents that group.  Even though not all the Micronesians at Chaminade share my feelings, the Micronesian Club shows me there are some who do.

In the preamble of the FSM’s constitution, a line says “The seas bring us together, they do not separate us." Is this still true? I still believe but I want more people to believe it too. 

I could say I am from Mogmog, Ulithi. I could call myself Yapese. I could say that I am from the FSM. But I would be denying something bigger about myself that I am a part of, and that’s something I just can’t do.