The mobile exhibit, , which features a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., is coming to Oʻahu. It will be on display January 14–19 at the Great Lawn of the University of �鶹��ý–West Oʻahu in Kapolei. The exhibit, which also includes a mobile Education Center, honors the more than 3 million Americans who served and bears the names of the 58,281 men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in the Vietnam War. The exhibit will be open 24 hours a day until it is dismantled on January 19.

“After 30 years displaying in communities throughout the United States, few communities have worked as hard as Kapolei to host The Wall That Heals,” said Jim Knotts, president and CEO of Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF), the nonprofit that founded The Wall. “Our events in Hilo and Maui were incredible, and we’re excited to bring the exhibit to Oʻahu.”

Community impact

Local efforts were championed by Vietnam veteran Eddie Freeman, co-chair of The Wall That Heals – Oʻahu. He noted that his past experience on other islands “deepened my resolve to bring this powerful memorial to Oʻahu. The selection of Kapolei, �鶹��ý, by VVMF stands as one of the most significant events for the community in 2026.”

A related showing of “Ah Quon McElrath: The Struggle Never Ends” will be held 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. on January 16, at the ʻUluʻulu film screening room in the James & Abigail Campbell Library. Presented by the Center for Labor Education and Research, the event will include comments from filmmakers Chris Conybeare and Joy Chong-Stannard on the film’s connection to the Vietnam War and today, along with a historical exhibit.

For more visit .

—By Zenaida Serrano Arvman

�鶹��ý labor leader and social activist Ah Quon McElrath is the focus of a new documentary that will air on on October 17, at 8:30 p.m. Ah Quon McElrath: The Struggle Never Ends! will re-air on October 20 at 1 p.m.

McElrath, a UH Mānoa alumna who earned her degree in sociology, helped found the at UH Mānoa and also served on the UH Board of Regents. In 2004, she was given the UH Founders Alumni Association Lifetime Achievement Award for her leadership in advocating social change in education and improving social conditions throughout �鶹��ý.

McElrath was a pivotal force in �Ჹ�ɲ���ʻ��’s labor movement and a champion for social justice.

The documentary is a production of the Center for Labor Education and Research (CLEAR) at the UH West Oʻahu. One of the leading donors was at the .

“We are thrilled to sponsor this program about AQ’s life,” said Kathryn L. Braun, Barbara Cox Anthony Endowed Chair of Aging. “This important female leader not only helped democratize the state of �鶹��ý, but also demonstrated a lifelong commitment to education. We’re so proud to count her as an alumna and recognize her service on the University of �Ჹ�ɲ���ʻ��’s Board of Regents.”

McElrath was born in 1915 and died in 2008, yet her legacy lives on as her contributions extended far beyond the labor movement, advocating for healthcare, education, fair housing, and civil and human rights throughout �鶹��ý.

By exploring McElrath’s life, The Struggle Never Ends! documents some of �Ჹ�ɲ���ʻ��’s most important history and how her work continues to inspire future generations. The documentary is part of the Ah Quon McElrath Project, which preserves her legacy through rare footage, interviews and educational materials.

U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono visited the on January 12, and spoke with students, alumni, faculty, staff and administrators about initiatives in sustainable food and agriculture, food security, digital media, labor education and research, and more.

As part of her visit, Hirono toured , , and the new .

“For the last decade, UH West Oʻahu has steadily worked to expand the programs, resources, and support available to its students,” Hirono said in a release. “They have demonstrated their commitment to creating opportunities to enable all students—particularly underrepresented students—to receive a quality post-secondary education.”

• Related UH News story: U.S. Sen. Hirono visits UH West Oʻahu, meets students, November 18, 2022

During Hirono’s tour of the māla (garden), she met with Albie Miles, assistant professor of , and discussed the program, which prepares students for jobs in the sustainable food and agriculture sector. Hirono also spoke to Manulani Aluli Meyer, Konohiki of Kūlana o Kapolei (director of Indigenous education), and Indrajit Gunasekara, financial aid officer, about their NiU NOW!/Uluniu Project movement, and planted an ʻulu (breadfruit) tree in the Uluniu Grove beside the māla.

Her next meeting was with William Puette, director of the (CLEAR), which is designed to provide labor education, research and labor-related programs to workers, their organizations and the general public. CLEAR recently established a .

Hirono then visited ʻUluʻulu, the state’s official archive for moving images, where she spoke with staff about the digital preservation work they do with audiovisual materials sharing �鶹��ý’s culture, traditions and collective memory.

Finally, Hirono toured the new ACM Student Production Center with Chris Lee, founder and director of the ACM System; Sharla Hanaoka, director of ; and students and alumni, who shared the work they are doing within the hub for creative media education throughout the ACM System.

Hirono also stopped by and briefly spoke at two events on campus: a board meeting for Pacific Islanders in Communications, a national nonprofit media arts organization whose board of directors represent �鶹��ý, Guam, American Samoa and public television entities; and the �鶹��ý Food Systems Summit, where participants brainstormed ideas for food system transformation and policy ideas for implementation during the 2023 state legislative session.

“UH West Oʻahu offers diverse programs in promising fields that can contribute to �鶹��ý’s economy, such as creative media and agriculture, and I enjoyed learning more about these initiatives,” Hirono said. “I will continue working to support �鶹��ý’s colleges and universities, as well as the students they serve.”

For more, go to .
—By Zenaida Serrano Arvman

Amazon Labor Union President Chris Smalls will discuss the growing trend of independent labor unions at the 10th annual LaborFest �鶹��ý event. The (CLEAR) and at the are helping to organize the event along with other union cosponsors.

This year’s LaborFest �鶹��ý event, “Organize Hawaii,” will be live streamed on Thursday, September 15, 6–7 p.m. on the LaborFest �鶹��ý and pages. There will also be a stream link during the live broadcast via .

According to UH West Oʻahu faculty specialist in labor education and event co-organizer Leslie Lopez, the purpose of the event is to discuss the current wave of independent labor unions—such as Amazon, Chipotle, Starbucks and Target—and the obstacles workers face when trying to organize an independent union in their workplace.

The event will feature a panel discussion including Smalls and CLEAR Director William Puette. Lyla Berg from the National Council for Learning and Civic Engagement will moderate the panel.

Other panelists will include:

• Amy Perruso, �鶹��ý state representative
• Kalani Werner, UPW state director
• Eric Gill, Unite HERE Local 5 financial secretary and treasurer
• Chris West, ILWU Local 142 president
• Kawenaʻulaokalā Kapahua, graduate worker at Academic Labor United

“We hope attendees learn about the invaluable role organized labor plays in workplace safety, wage standards and healthcare in society, particularly in �鶹��ý,” Lopez said. “We hope working people learn how important it is to vote for legislators who support organized labor, and how labor laws that protect working people also protect the general public.”

National labor leader Sara Nelson discussed the safety and health of workers through the example of �鶹��ý’s transportation workers during a virtual event hosted by the University of �鶹��ý–West Oʻahu’s (CLEAR) in September.

Named by the New York Times, Nelson is the international president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO, which represents nearly 50,000 flight attendants at 20 airlines.

“As the great labor organizer Mother Jones (Mary G. Harris Jones) said, ‘Mourn the dead and fight like hell for the living,’ and we are doing that right now,” Nelson said at the beginning of her presentation, following a moment of silence for workers who lost their lives during the course of the pandemic. “We’re doing that by coming together today, honoring the people who have come before us, honoring the people who gave up their lives to give us the rights that we have.”

CLEAR, LaborFest �鶹��ý, and the �鶹��ý State AFL-CIO collaborated to co-sponsor the event, which drew 170 participants to the live Zoom meeting and more than 900 views to the recorded presentation on .

On the , the event description stated, “Awareness and respect for workers’ rights and responsibilities combined with action by individuals is needed because the resilience and soundness of the community is directly connected to our well-being as workers.”

“Our rights that we have as labor do not exist because they were just bestowed upon us…,” Nelson said. “They were won because people thought it was important enough to stand up for each other and to fight against all odds for a better day for ourselves, and for our families, and for our fellow co-workers.”

—By Zenaida Serrano Arvman

An effort to rescue, restore and install labor murals by noted �鶹��ý ceramic artist Isami Enomoto has earned University of �鶹��ý–W����� Oʻahu’s (CLEAR) a Preservation Award from the . Enomoto’s work graces several mid-century buildings.

The award will be presented to William Puette, CLEAR director, along with and Bank of �鶹��ý, during the Preservation Honor Awards Ceremony on May 23.

CLEAR helped raise approximately $43,000 for the restoration and installation, and secured wall space in the James and Abigail Campbell Library to display the murals. The murals were installed in December 2017.

“The murals were meticulously restored and relocated to a meaningful and publicly accessible location,” noted Kirsten Faulkner, Historic �鶹��ý executive director, in a letter to Puette. “We congratulate you and your exemplary preservation efforts.”

Faulkner also noted that the Preservation Honor Awards are �鶹��ý’s highest recognition of preservation projects that perpetuate, rehabilitate, restore or interpret the state’s architectural, archaeological and/or cultural heritage.

The award caps off the multi-year mural restoration project. Enomoto’s five murals, which depict �鶹��ý labor scenes in the early 1960s, hung above teller stations at the Bank of �鶹��ý branch on Kapahulu Avenue until 2015 when the location was sold.

At Bank of �鶹��ý’s request, Docomomo US–�鶹��ý agreed to warehouse the large pieces while it searched for their new home. Docomomo US is a non-profit group dedicated to understanding, preserving and documenting the modern movement in planning, architecture, landscapes and public art.

From .

—By Greg Wiles

Canefield Songs: Holehole Bushi,��a fascinating documentary peering into the lives of Japanese plantation workers in �鶹��ý, was screened at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History on Thursday, June 22. The half-hour film was co-produced by University of �鶹��ý-West Oʻahu’s (CLEAR) and .

The showing at the museum’s S.C. Johnson Conference Center was accompanied by a talk by Chris Conybeare, CLEAR faculty member and the documentary’s writer and ��producer, and Franklin Odo, former UH West Oʻahu Distinguished Visiting Scholar and former professor of sociology and ethnic studies at UH Mānoa. Odo is also a founding director of the Smithsonian’s Asian Pacific American Center.

Canefield Songs: Holehole Bushi��focuses on the folk songs sung by Japanese plantation workers and tells the story of music teacher Harry Urata and his efforts at preserving musical oral histories. The film is part of The Canefields Songs Project, which explores the songs and stories of Japanese immigrants who came to work in sugar cane fields in the late 19th and 20th��centuries. In addition to the half-hour documentary narrated by noted ukulele player Jake Shimabukuro, the canefields project includes��, a 272-page book by Odo and a����designed by UH West Oʻahu creative media students.

• Related UH News story: Songs of Japanese plantation workers focus of UH West Oahu documentary, September 9, 2015

Filmaker Joy Chong-Stannard also served as producer, director and editor, while UH West Oʻahu Assistant Professor served as music advisor for the project. Brandin Soquena, a UH West Oʻahu music and creative media student, composed the documentary’s original music.

The documentary premiered��in July 2015 at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, and was followed by its �鶹��ý debut in September 2015 on PBS �鶹��ý. It was rebroadcast on PBS �鶹��ý in February 2016.

Preserving Olympic Dreams and Plantation Memories, presented by the University of �鶹��ý–West Oʻahu��, is playing at the�� (HIFF) on November 6, 2 p.m. at the Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18 theaters.

Preserving Olympic Dreams and Plantation Memories, a��restored and digitized edition of the 1984 documentary, Coach,��was originally produced by the�� (CLEAR)��as part of the center’s�� television series. The half hour program tells the story of how Maui plantation kids, banned from the whites-only swimming pool, trained in irrigation ditches in the 1930s. Finding strength and determination through the sport, the group went on to win national and even Olympic championships under Coach Soichi Sakamoto.

This special HIFF program highlights a collaborative preservation and digitization effort (the Rice and Roses Digitization Project), sponsored by ʻUluʻulu, (HCH) and CLEAR that will provide public access to hundreds of hours of never-before-seen film, videos and full length interviews that document �鶹��ý’s plantation era. The digital files will be available to educators, students and researchers to bring images of a bygone era to life and enrich the understanding of �鶹��ý plantation and swimming history.

The Coach collection has full length interviews with Coach Sakamoto and champion swimmers such as Olympic Gold medal winner Bill Smith, National champions Keo Nakama, Fujiko “Fudge” Katsutani, Chieko “Chic” Miyamoto and more. Also featured are scenes of competition at the Honolulu Natatorium, Maui’s Camp Five Pool, and national swim meets in the 30s and 40s. There are nostalgic moments of the swimmers leaving Honolulu on the liner Matsonia and their adventures on the mainland. Outtake excerpts from this collection will follow the screening of the 30-minute documentary.

Showing also features panel discussion

Preserving Olympic Dreams and Plantation Memories, is part of an initial preservation and digitization grant from HCH. This free screening event will be followed by a special panel discussion presented by ʻUluʻulu.

The panel discussion will include commentary on the never-before-seen footage��narrated by Julie Checkoway, writer of the New York Times bestseller, . Other panelists include ʻUluʻulu Head Archivist and Coach��director Joy Chong-Stannard.

Tickets for the free screening can be reserved through the website.

For more information, read the story.

—By Leila Wai Shimokawa

The University of �鶹��ý–West Oʻahu won the 2016 Reference and User Services Association honoring libraries that recognize the history and contributions of the labor movement in the United States.

Located in the UH West Oʻahu Library, the Center for Labor Education and Research maintains a research collection and archive of labor history and law containing clipping files on local unions in �鶹��ý, as well as an ever-growing collection of contracts, union newsletters, books and pamphlets focusing on �鶹��ý’s rich labor history.

In addition, the archive houses the Rice and Roses television series about �鶹��ý’s labor movement and rare books and texts including the Na Lula Halawai text translating 1854 pre-territorial parliamentary procedures from Native Hawaiian to English.

Preserving history for future generations

“The mission of the labor archive at the Center for Labor Education and Research is to preserve labor history materials for future generations, protect the artifacts and make them accessible for public use, and defend the importance of working class history,” said Kate Kosturski, award committee chair.

The UH West Oʻahu Center for Labor Education and Research will be honored with an award plaque sponsored by the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO at the Reference and User Services Association Achievement Awards Ceremony and Reception in Orlando this June.

About the Center for Labor Research and Education

The Center for Labor Education and Research is an endowed, outreach program established in 1976 that provides labor education, research and labor-related programs to workers, their organizations, university students and the general public through a variety of methods including classroom instruction, seminars, workshops, publications and the use of the public media.

—From

—By Julie Funasaki Yuen

This September, will air , a compelling documentary about the songs of Japanese immigrant workers sung while laboring in �鶹��ý’s sugar plantations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Hosted and narrated by ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro, Canefield Songs: Holehole Bushi will air on PBS Hawaii on September 17 at 9 p.m. with a sneak preview screening of the documentary on Tuesday, September 15 from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the UH West Oʻahu Library ʻUluʻulu Archive Exhibition Space.

Called holehole (Hawaiian for dried cane leaves) bushi (Japanese for melody or tune), the songs are an intimate record of the workers’ joys, sorrows, and challenges, and provide a fascinating window into early plantation life.

Canefield Songs: Holehole Bushi was co-produced by the University of �鶹��ý-West Oʻahu and PBS Hawaii. The production team included Executive Producer and Writer Chris Conybeare; Producer/Director Joy Chong-Stannard; and Franklin Odo, former UH West Oʻahu distinguished visiting scholar, founding director of the Smithsonian Institution’s and former acting chief of the at the Library of Congress.

Sharing stories through song

Canefield Songs: Holehole Bushi brings together archival interviews and music in a stunning new 30-minute video partly based on Odo’s book , published by Oxford University Press.

Pioneers and former plantation workers Katsue Asakura of Wainaku (�鶹��ý County) and Haru Ueno, Tsuyoshi Endo, Kiku Yoshida and Yasu Sato of Waipahu tell their stories and share songs. Many of these songs, composed and sung by women, provide a direct connection to �鶹��ý’s plantation past as experienced by female Japanese immigrant plantation workers.

“Holehole bushi are the Japanese immigrant equivalent of ‘the blues,’” said Conybeare, Center for Labor Education and Research specialist. “The songs themselves inform us about all aspects of immigrant life. A surprising number chronicle the seamy side of existence on �鶹��ý’s plantations, including workplace brutality, sexual tensions, drinking, and gambling.”

In the 1960s, Honolulu music teacher Harry Urata recorded over 100 holehole bushi, sung by the women and men who created them 60 years before. His own experiences in concentration camps during World War II taught him the value of preserving immigrant culture and much of Canefield Songs: Holehole Bushi is told through Urata, who was instrumental in the preservation of this important part of plantation history.

Passing on knowledge

The documentary includes interviews and performances by students who learned �鶹��ý plantation history from their grandparents, featuring music teacher Harry Urata, singer Allison Arakawa and sisters Cara and Lacy Tsutsuse. The documentary also includes original music by UH West Oʻahu student Brandin Soquena and Assistant Professor of Music Jon Magnussen.

“Revival of the songs and stories depends on new generations learning and passing on the knowledge,” says Conybeare.

The themes and haunting sadness expressed in holehole bushi have led to their renewed popularity. The songs can be heard in tea houses and night clubs in Japan and were featured at the Tokyo Summer Festival in 2009.