Hawaii's LGBTQ+ community kicked off Pride Month with a sunrise blessing in Waikiki, a positive and culturally rooted start to weeks of celebration.

• Members of the Hawaii LGBT Legacy Foundation and LGBTQ+ community gathered at dawn to welcome the sun with Hawaiian chant.
• The ceremony blessed the Kapaemahu stones, long tied to Hawaiian healers honored as both male and female.
• The blessing links modern Pride to Native Hawaiian tradition rather than treating it as an imported event.
• Official Honolulu Pride events start next Wednesday with a kick-off pau hana at the International Market Place.

Outlook: Pride programming runs through the month in Waikiki, building toward the main parade and festival events.