THE HILO MASSACRE Set for Kumu Kahua

The Hilo Massacre

by Tremayne Tamayose for the Center for Labor Education & Research, University of Hawai‘i (now at West O‘ahu) for broadcast as part of the Center's Rice & Roses series on Hawaii Public Television
On August 1, 1938, to express their solidarity with striking workers in Honolulu, more than 200 Big Island men and women belonging to different labor unions (including longshoremen, warehousemen, teamsters, garbage collectors, quarry workers and the ladies auxiliary) attempted peacefully to demonstrate against the arrival of a ship from Oahu. They were met by a force of over 70 police officers who tear-gassed, hosed and fired riot guns into the crowd. Fifty of the demonstrators were hospitalized. Based in part on research from labor historian William J. Puette's book The Hilo Massacre: Hawaii's Bloody Monday, Tremaine Tamayose's teleplay, originally produced for the PBS labor history series Rice and Roses, infuses historical events with personal stories of the workers, police and politicians. It is brought to the theatrical stage for the first time by Kumu Kahua Theatre.

Thursday, Friday & Saturday 8pm: May 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29; June 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 2010

Sundays 2pm: May 23, 30; June 6, 13, *20, 2010

* American Sign Language Performan

For more information, click here.