Culture: Defend Hawaii; Defend Aloha... New Street Clothing Line in Hawaii

My friend Adi came over for brunch the other day to our condo, and was wearing this shirt. He's a cop, so I thought he might be wearing the shirt in support of his men or something. I didn't ask too much about it, I just thought it was cool. It was a pretty gangster shirt with a gun on it that said "Defend Hawaii". Adi had gotten me a gift too, and I only opened it after he left... when I opened the box, I had my OWN Defend Hawaii shirt! I was actually pretty happy, because I wanted one! So what is the meaning behind all of it? Well I went to their website to check it out... www.defendhawaii.com

From my experiences here in Hawaii, I've noticed that the Hawaiian people are very welcoming people, and very proud of their culture. You'll always have people saying "aloha" to you, as they wave their hang loose hand gesture, instead of our typical "hi!" wave. What I mean by this gesture is the you point your thumb and pinky finger out and close the rest of your hand to make the "hang loose" sign. I'm sure you've all seen it before. Anyway, as I read through their website, this is what they had to say: "To Defend Hawaii, is to defend the spirit of aloha. It is the resolve, accomplishment and state of mind, that is perpetuated through our culture and traditions. So that generations to come will live in our footprint. No where on God’s green earth can mirror the unconditional acceptance and support we show to family and strangers alike. It is our duty to preserve this spirit. To Defend Hawaii is to defend aloha; by any means necessary."

I'm glad Adi got me this shirt, because I totally support this cause as well. Hawaiians have an amazing way of preserving their culture and not letting it be too "Americanized" as we call it. Hawaii is in fact at state, but when you're here, it doesn't really feel like you're in the USA, because of their strong cultural push. They make sure that every visitor on the island gets a taste of Aloha, and they educate people on the meanings of many things on the island.

With this, I bid you Adieu... and ALOOOOOOHA!

Back of  Shirt