2026 ʻOnipaʻa Marches
Marking the 133rd year since the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom
Each year, Kānaka ʻŌiwi observe the anniversary of the illegal overthrow of the sovereign Hawaiian Kingdom and the coup d’état against Queen Liliʻuokalani which occurred on January 17, 1893.
This act of treason was perpetrated by a group of foreign businessmen living in Hawaiʻi and backed by armed United States Marines from the USS Boston which was, by design, anchored offshore of Honolulu at the time. The traitors numbered 13 and included six kingdom subjects of American descent, five Americans, one Scotsman and one German, and were led by Sanford B. Dole, a Hawaiʻi-born descendant of American missionaries.
Ostensibly, the coup was to secure lower tariffs on their sugar exports, but the American military already had designs on securing Puʻuloa (Pearl Harbor) for a military base as part of its Pacific expansion. Annexation to the U.S. was always the long-term goal, but the timing of their insurrection was prompted by the queen’s attempt to replace the 1887 “Bayonet Constitution” that expanded the rights of foreigners with a new constitution to restore the rights of ʻŌiwi.
The annual march from Maunaʻala to ʻIolani Palace honors the enduring resistance and resilience of our lāhui. This year, two marches were held – the ʻOnipaʻa Peace March on Friday, January 16, and the ʻOnipaʻa Lōkahi March on Saturday, January 17 – with nearly 8,000 people participating altogether.
2026 Opening Day of the Hawaiʻi State Legislature
