The Māhūi is the Culture and Education Subcommittee of the Hawai’i LGBT Legacy Foundation.
Recent event:
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. If you would like to support, volunteer, or sponsor other Pride365 events in the future, do not hesitate to reach out to any of the HLLF board members mentioned below.
The event could not have been possible without the following:
Venue: Bishop Museum
DJ: DJ A.i.T.
Drag Mentors: Gdolce, Jerrica Benton, Shalani Dante, Dixon
Drag Mentees: Ilima S., Maya C.
Entertainment: Chardonnay, Izik, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa Queer Dance
Visual Media: Kara Miller, Michele Bisbee
Photography: Mahina Choy Ellis
Security: Zeus and Co.
See more photos from the event at Mahina Choy Photography.
About the Māhūi
The group, formed in 2021, represents a shift in the Legacy Foundation’s efforts in ensuring that the organizationʻs work is place-based, and in particular, that it reflects Kanaka stories, values, and history in its programming.
One of the groupʻs first projects was a continuation of the series of Rainbow Town Halls previously produced by the Foundation’s Community Outreach Team in partnership with the Hawai’i Health & Harm Reduction Center. 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 several are being prepared for 2023. More details will be available soon.
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 Pasefika peoples, and to initiate Honolulu Pride Month.
In 2022, led by board members Sami L.A Akuna, Tati Young, Ha’aheo Zablan, and Ian Tapu, alongside cultural alaka’i Kepa Barrett, the Māhūi ushered in what has become an annual opening ceremony for Honolulu Pride with the Nā Pōhaku Ola Ceremony, in accordance with the 2022 theme “Rooted In Pride”. The group also led the 2022 Honolulu Pride Parade, as a way of grounding and centering the celebrations in indigenous experiences, knowledge and values.
The Māhūiʻs contributions to the Hawaiʻi LGBT Legacy Foundation and the larger community will continue to expand in 2023, engaging LGBTQIA+ youth in cultural and leadership development, in addition to its already established programming.
To learn more about the Māhūi, contact Ian Tapu.