HONOLULU—Coaxing viewers to come enjoy all the islands have to offer, a new Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau ad boasted Thursday of sandy white tourists as far as the eye could see. “Hawaii is world-renowned for the shimmering, alabaster vacationers lining its popular shorelines,” said a soothing voiceover in the 30-second TV spot, which faded between shots of Caucasian Americans milling about a shopping district in Waikiki, trampling over rare endemic flora at Haleakala National Park, and cannonballing into resort swimming pools while Hawaii residents face water shortages. “Watch the beautiful Pacific waves crash onto the blindingly white visitors from Ohio and Nebraska who drain local resources without a care in the world. Once you say aloha to the hordes of albino tourists stretching for miles along the coast, you’ll find your worries about exploiting these islands and their people melt away.” The commercial concludes with a mention of the islands’ famous sunsets, in which “nature puts on a spectacular show” that features dramatic, dazzling shades of crimson red reflecting off sunburned bodies.
