Kill Haole Day

In his 2009 book, lawyer and former Hawaiʻi governor Ben Cayetano wrote that "Kill Haole Day" began as a news story headline about an incident between haole and local (not just Hawaiian) students. After that, "whenever there was a fight or an incident between haole and non-haole students, the news media", and newspaper editorial boards, "repeatedly reprised 'Kill Haole Day' in their news stories".

In 1999, School Superintendent Paul LeMahieu said he was aware of "Kill Haole Day" but not of any significant incidents. Also, in 1999, it was an issue during debate on hate crimes legislation.

On December 31, 2008, the U.S. Department of Education released a report on Kealakehe Intermediate School in Kailua-Kona that concluded there was "substantial evidence that students experienced racially and sexually derogatory name-calling on nearly a daily basis on school buses, at school bus stops, in school hallways and other areas of the school". The report also concluded that school officials responded inadequately or not at all when students complained of racial harassment. Students who did complain were retaliated against by their antagonists.