Welo Ka Hae Hawaiʻi – Celebrating Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea
Wednesday, July 31, 2024
Welo Ka Hae Hawaiʻi – Celebrating Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea
Wednesday, July 31, 2024
After Hours Event
Welo Ka Hae Hawaiʻi – Celebrating Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea
Wednesday, July 31, 2024
5:00pm – 9:00pm | Hawaiian Hall Complex
This event is at capacity.
Wednesday, July 31, 2024
5 – 9 pm
Hawaiian Hall Complex
Ka ʻUla Wena Oceanic Red · Castle Memorial Building
Gallery Lawns
FREE with registration
Bishop Museum celebrates Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea, Sovereignty Restoration Day.
Aloha Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea kākou! We have reached registration capacity for this event; however, we have no plans to turn guests away at the door.
Established on July 31, 1843, by Kauikeaouli, King Kamehameha III, Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea became one of the first national holidays of the Hawaiian Kingdom. Marking the return of political power to the government of King Kamehameha III after the British temporarily seized control of Hawai‘i in 1843, Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea was celebrated with great pride throughout the 19th century. Celebrations included large community gatherings and formal affairs hosted by the King himself. In the words of Kamehameha III, who proclaimed on this day, “Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono” (The life [sovereignty] of the land is perpetuated in righteousness).
Join us for an evening of Ea Activations by Kanaka community leaders sharing perspectives on independence, inspired by select mea kupuna showcased in our Bishop Museum original exhibition Ka ʻUla Wena: Oceanic Red. Our observance of this national holiday of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi will also feature educational displays and activities, mea ‘ai provided by Hale Kealoha, mele and more.
Spotlight Programming
5:00 pm
Flag Raising with Reenactors of the Hawai’i Civil War Roundtable (Flagpole Lawn)
5:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Ka Papa Loʻi o Kānewai with educational displays and activities (Gallery Lawns)
Kanaeokana with heat transfer printing. Bring your own item, t-shirt, jacket, pillowcase, tote bag, etc., to be printed with your choice of Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea inspired designs. (Hawaiian Hall Atrium)
Mea ʻai provided by Hale Kealoha; while supplies last (Gallery Lawns)
6:00 pm
Ea Activation (Ka ʻUla Wena: Oceanic Red, Castle Memorial Building)
Līloa’s Kā‘ei: A Royal Symbol of the Hawaiian Kingdom that Continues to Exist under International Law with Keanu Sai, Ph.D.
ʻUla Nōweo Reflection (Ka ʻUla Wena: Oceanic Red, Castle Memorial Building)
Haehae i ka Hā Lau Piko: the Flag of Numerous Cords with Nameaaea Hoshino
Live Music featuring Hōlei (Gallery Lawn Stage)
6:30 pm
Ea Activation (Ka ʻUla Wena: Oceanic Red, Castle Memorial Building)
E Kolili Pono ana nā Hulu i Luna: A Conversation about Kūkāʻilimoku, Hoʻomana, and Ea with Noenoe K. Silva, Ph.D.
Celebrate Hawaiian sovereignty with educational displays and exhibits. Experience our collections and engage with knowledgeable speakers throughout the event.
Nameaaea Hoshino – Namea Hoshino was raised in Lahaina and graduated from Lahainaluna High School. He holds a background in Hawaiian Studies with an emphasis on Hawaiian Language Immersion from the University of Hawai‘i Maui College. Since 2011, Namea has been instrumental in the Maui Nui Botanical Gardens’ (MNBG) efforts, funded by a Ceres Trust grant, to create a “huli bank” of verified Hawaiian kalo cultivars. This initiative supports the growth and distribution of over 60 varieties of Hawaiian kalo to Maui farmers and other growers as part of a statewide effort to mālama Hāloa. Namea has led numerous cultural workshops at MNBG, sharing his expertise on kalo, including classes on related variety groups, kulolo-making techniques, and other cultural practices.
Dr. Keanu Sai – Dr. Keanu Sai holds a Ph.D. in Political Science, specializing in Hawaiian Constitutionalism and International Relations. He is a founding member of the Hawaiian Society of Law & Politics. Dr. Sai has notable experience serving as the lead Agent for the Hawaiian Kingdom in arbitration proceedings before the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, Netherlands, from November 1999 to February 2001. His expertise and contributions to the field of Hawaiian political science and international law are widely recognized.
Kauwila Mahi – Daniel Kauwila Mahi is an ʻŌiwi Hawaiʻi visual artist, researcher, video game designer, and composer from Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. Exhibiting internationally, their work embodies genealogical rhythms of sovereignty, solidarity, and ceremony through ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi. Kauwila has contributed as a sound designer for award-winning ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi video games like He Ao Hou and Wao Kanaka, and received the Jim Winters Award for 3-Dimensional Design at the Honolulu Museum of Art’s Artists of Hawaiʻi 2021. As a Hawaiian language translator for universities and Indigenous communities, they mentor students in translation theory. Kauwila’s work, inspired by their matriarchal genealogy of lei makers, feather workers, and photographers, traverses an Indigenous future while resisting state-sponsored violence and militourism.
Dr. Noenoe Silva – Dr. Noenoe Silva, born on Oʻahu and of Kanaka Maoli descent, grew up in California and returned to Hawaiʻi in 1985. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Hawaiian language in 1991 and began teaching at UH Mānoa. Dr. Silva completed a master’s degree in Library and Information Studies in 1993 and a doctorate in Political Science in 1999. Joining the faculty of Political Science in 2001, she is now a full professor, teaching courses in Hawaiian and Indigenous politics and Hawaiian language. Her notable works include Aloha Betrayed: Native Hawaiian Resistance to American Colonialism and The Power of the Steel-tipped Pen: Reconstructing Native Hawaiian Intellectual History, both published by Duke University Press. Dr. Silva will be speaking at the “Welo Ka Hae Hawaiʻi: Celebrating Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea” event at Bishop Museum.
Mahalo ā nui to Kamehameha Schools Kaiāulu for their generous support of this program!
Mahalo piha to our community partners Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea, Kanaeokana and Ka Papa Loʻi o Kānewai for their support and dedication!
