"From Pakala to Kealakekua: Being Gay in Hawaiʻi"

In 1996, Honolulu Weekly published an article titled "Local Outing: Gay Asian and Pacific Islander men are the focus of a Hawaiʻi State Library-hosted exhibit." The article included several examples of the courageous participants, which you can see here.

The article said: "The photos, disarmingly sweet, portray Asians and Pacific Islanders. Locals. Gay men smiling and framed by tropical greenery; looking out of whitewashed wooden windows; at home in Hawaii."

Conceived by John Kim, an HIV educator for the Life Foundation, and realized by photographer Jon M. Fujiwara, the exhibit was titled "From Pakala to Kealakekua: Being Gay in Hawaiʻi." The article continued that "it serves to vitalize and bolster an underexposed community in Hawaiʻi: gay men of Asian and Pacific Islander heritage."

About pulling the project together, Kim remembered: "When I approached people to be in the project, they didn't want to call attention to themselves as an individual, apart from the community. See, that's not very 'local style.' And men I never even suspected, like guys from Kapaʻa, Kauaʻi, showed interest in doing it. They said things that are real commonalities among all gay men - what they find comfort in. They have family, they have friends, and they have deep, committed relationships."