The ‘Ambassador of Aloha’ Who Showcased Hawai‘i’s Splendors to the World

Duke Kahanamoku Broke Records, Integrated Swimming Pools and Beaches, and Personified the Islands' Gracious Spirit

On the morning of June 14, 1925, Duke Kahanamoku was camping out on the beach in the seaside village of Corona del Mar, about 50 miles south of Los Angeles, getting ready to do some surfing with friends, when he noticed a fishing boat named The Thelma heading out to sea.

Kahanamoku was at a crossroads in his life. He was about to turn 35 years old and his days of winning Olympic gold medals for swimming were over. He’d moved to Southern California to become a movie star, …

By David Davis | June 18, 2018

The Honolulu Homeless Project That Could Only Have Worked in Hawai‘i

The New Kahauiki Village Is Rekindling the Communal Values of Old Plantation Towns

By Duane Kurisu | June 6, 2018

My father always said that you get out of life what you put into it. But I believe that people like me, who grew up in a sugar plantation town, …

Before You Push That Big Nuclear Button, Consider the Source

From Intentional Hoaxes to Accidental Alerts, Our Interconnectedness Makes Us Vulnerable to Fear

By Robert Bartholomew | February 20, 2018

Shortly after 8 a.m. on January 13, 2018, the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency sent out a chilling alert to residents across the state of Hawaii: “BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO …

What Hawaii Taught This Midwesterner About Her Own Identity

A Nebraska Historian Explores a State’s Racial Hierarchy Through the Lives of Missionary Children

By Joy Schulz | February 9, 2018

I was 16 when I first visited the islands. A skinny, white girl with a bad perm, I became red as a lobster after spending one week on Maui.

I …

Trump Might Be the Best Foil American Democracy Can Have

Journalist E.J. Dionne and Rep. Colleen Hanabusa Discuss the Civic Power of the Response to a President

By Reed Johnson | January 25, 2018

Should the Trump presidency make us more optimistic about America’s future?

E.J. Dionne—a prominent liberal pundit who is both a nationally syndicated columnist for The Washington Post and a senior fellow …

Hawaii Isn’t So Beautiful at the Ballot Box

How Did the Aloha State End up Last in the Nation in Voter Participation?

By Reed Johnson | November 30, 2017

During Hawaii’s early days as an American state, the late U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye would boast about its high voter participation rate.

But since that mid-20th-century high watermark, Hawaii has …

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