AI POHAKU Upcycled Tee

 After the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1893, the traitors responsible for the coup demanded that the members of the Royal Hawaiian Band sign an oath of loyalty to the new "Provisional" government in order to keep their jobs. Band members loyal to Queen Liliuokalani refused, saying that they would be satisfied with the stones, essentially stating that they'd rather eat rocks than pledge allegiance to the new illegitimate government.

Ellen Prendergast penned a song of resistance called "Kaulana Nā Pua" about the Hawaiian people and their objection to Annexation. Also known as "the Stone Eater's Song," the song tells the story of the heartbroken Royal Hawaiian Band members. "'Ai Pōhaku" means "stone eater" or "eat rocks." 

Would you rather eat rocks than acknowledge the current occupation as legitimate? Would you rather eat the stones? Wear your heart on your sleeve with these soft upcycled tees.

In Hawaiian 'āina means "that which feeds." It is a mother, grandmother, cousin, and ancestor and should be loved and cared for as such. Society's consumer culture is a one-way RUT trip: Remove (from the earth), Use it, then Trash it. To get out of this RUT, we need turn the endpoint into a new beginning. So, all of our shirts are upcycled; we spread our message of aloha 'aina on carefully selected, high quality, thrifted garments.

Each garment is a one of a kind original. Our exclusive design was carved and printed by hand with aloha.