Māhūi


The Māhūi is the Culture and Education subcommittee of the Hawaiʻi LGBT Legacy Foundation.

The Māhūi, formed in 2021, represents a shift in the Hawaiʻi LGBT Legacy Foundation’s efforts in ensuring that the organization’s work is place-based, and in particular, that it reflects Kanaka stories, values, and history in its programming.

The Māhūi is comprised of members of the Foundation Board along with Hawaiian and Pasifika cultural practitioners, students, ʻohana and friends. It produces the annual sunrise protocol and ceremony program at Nā Pōhaku Ola O Kapaemahu A Me Kapuni on October 1 to honor culture and ancestors and set the tone for Honolulu Pride Month. The Māhūi also leads the Honolulu Pride Parade and hosts educational and social gatherings, like Rainbow Town Halls and the Pride Pāʻina Lā ʻOhana, throughout the year that center MVPFAFF/LGBTQIA+ culture and community.

For more information, contact Hawaiʻi LGBT Legacy Foundation board member Sami L.A. Akuna.

One of the group’s first projects was a continuation of the series of Rainbow Town Halls previously produced by the Foundation’s Community Outreach Team. Presented online and at Waiwai Collective, the 2021 Rainbow Town Halls explored queerness and indigeneity, community building and spirituality.

These intersectional dialogues featured cultural practitioners, community leaders, indigenous movement builders, musical artists and diverse members of the community. Rainbow Town Halls continued throughout 2022 and 2023.

On October 1, 2021 the Māhūi convened the first-ever Kapaemahu Ceremony at Nā Pōhaku Ola, commonly referred to as “the healer stones”, in Waikīkī to honor and pay tribute to ancestors, culture, and Pasifika peoples, and to initiate Honolulu Pride Month.

On February 11, 2023, the Māhūi of the Hawaiʻi LGBT Legacy Foundation hosted the first annual Pride Pāʻina Lā ʻOhana.  It was a night to celebrate LGBTQIA+ youth and provide a safe space for queer families. The Pāʻina is part of our Pride365 initiative that celebrates pride as more than a day, week or month, but a year-round endeavor.
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Photos: Mahina Choy Photography.


For more information, contact Hawaiʻi LGBT Legacy Foundation board member Sami LA. Akuna.