Music and Memory: UH Faculty Mark 50 Years of Kahoʻolawe Preservation
A new album and a concert at the Bishop Museum mark the anniversary of the movement that ended military bombing on the island.
By Yuna Fletcher ·
University of Hawaiʻi faculty are using music and classroom instruction to mark the 50th anniversary of the Protect Kahoʻolawe ʻOhana.
The island's military bombing stopped in 1990 after nearly 15 years of advocacy, but the work to restore the land continues. A new album titled 50 Years of Aloha ʻĀina and a concert scheduled for November 13 at the Bishop Museum serve as the final events of a year-long celebration of the anniversary.
Isaac ʻIkaʻaka Nāhuewai, known professionally as Ikaakamai, helped develop the album. He serves as a student engagement and Hawaiian language resource coordinator at UH Hilo and is a PhD candidate in Hawaiian and Indigenous performance studies at UH Mānoa. Nāhuewai recruited collaborators, wrote songs, directed the Protect Kahoʻolawe Band, and produced and mixed five tracks.
The album features 12 original mele and is available on all music platforms. Nāhuewai views the project as a method for preserving history and passing knowledge between generations. "Gathering and singing songs together creates alignment and collective spirit. Contributing our voices and mana fosters aloha lāhui (love for our people)," he said.
The movement traces back to 1976, when nine activists landed on Kahoʻolawe to draw attention to the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom. Upon arrival, they observed the destruction caused by nearly 50 years of military bombing. Their landing inspired the formation of the Protect Kahoʻolawe ʻOhana, which established the foundation for the current preservation efforts.
Kaipu Keala, an assistant professor at UH Mānoa’s Kamakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies, notes that the movement affirmed Hawaiian beliefs as a basis for caring for the land. He describes aloha ʻāina as a sacred relationship that guides daily responsibilities. "The value of aloha ʻāina takes on this religious dimension and that allows it to become more than just a slogan. It becomes a way of life," Keala said.
Kumu Kaliko Baker, an associate professor at UH Mānoa’s Kawaihuelani Center for Hawaiian Language, incorporates these values into her teaching. She helps lead the I Ola Kanaloa program, where students practice Hawaiian language, care for historical sites, and remove invasive plants on Kahoʻolawe. Baker notes that current students engage in civil action through established pathways on campus, reducing the physical risks faced by earlier generations.
Transportation to the island also relies on family networks. Kaulu Luʻuwai, an attorney with UH Mānoa’s Ka Huli Ao Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law, belongs to one such family. Her grandfather began transporting visitors and supplies in 1983 after her uncle helped arrange logistics through a UH ethnic studies class. Today, her father and brothers transport volunteers aboard the family boat, Pualele. "It’s a generational commitment. It’s not something we can just stop doing. It’s an obligation for us, a really heavy kuleana: getting people there safely to support the work the ʻOhana does on the island," Luʻuwai said.
The concert features musicians including Ikaakamai, Kimié Miner, and Kaʻikena Scanlan. The event is set to run from 5 to 9 p.m. on the Bishop Museum’s Great Lawn. Proceeds from the concert will support the Protect Kahoʻolawe ʻOhana.
Source: University of Hawaii News
