A cultural affair: hawaiʻi graduations

What many see as a standard rite of passage is no small affair in Hawaiʻi. Graduation ceremonies are celebrated with a panache that canʻt be found anywhere else. One of the things that make them so unique are the lei ceremonies that follow the formal program. During this celebration, graduates are buried in dozens of lei and floaties given to them by loved ones. This ongoing photo essay explores the unique ways in which Hawaiʻi honors its high school graduates.

My best friend, Ezra Hunkin, and I when we graduated from Leilehua High School in 2013.

My best friend, Ezra Hunkin, and I when we graduated from Leilehua High School in 2013.

In 2020, M. Kaleipumehana Cabral and I were commissioned by HuffPost to document how COVID-19 affected Hawaiʻi’s graduation traditions.

Learn more here.

 

MARIE ERIEL HOBRO IS A DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHER AND FILMMAKER BASED IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. SHE WAS BORN AND RAISED IN MARYLAND UNTIL THE AGE OF 10 AND SPENT THE REST OF HER PRE-TEEN AND TEENAGE YEARS IN HAWAI'I. SHE IS CURRENTLY STUDYING VISUAL JOURNALISM AT BROOKS INSTITUTE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AND WAS A STUDENT PARTICIPANT IN THE EDDIE ADAMS XXIX WORKSHOP. 

HOBRO ENJOYS WORKING ON STORIES THAT CELEBRATE AND EMBRACE INDIVIDUALITY, BREAK SOCIAL NORMS AND DEFY ODDS. SHE IS ALSO INTERESTED IN EXPLORING THE HEALING POWER OF HUMOR AND THE EFFECT THAT IT HAS ON MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH. WITH HER CAMERA AS HER TOOL, SHE HOPES TO GIVE A VOICE TO THE UNIQUE AND UNNOTICED PEOPLE OF THIS WORLD-- EMPOWERING THEM AND GIVING THEM THE POSITIVE RECOGNITION THAT THEY DESERVE.

 

"JOURNALISM IS FOR THE PEOPLE.

IT IS COMMUNITY-CENTRIC YET GLOBAL IN PERSPECTIVE.

IT IS TO INFORM AND ENLIGHTEN; TO EXPAND THE DIALOGUE;

TO PROBE AND PROVOKE; TO STIMULATE AND ENGAGE;

TO SHOW THE WAY OR PRESENT ANOTHER WAY;

TO OPEN THE DOORS AND TO COVER WRONG;

TO GIVE THE VOICELESS A MEGAPHONE."

-BRENDA BUTLER