FiliRooted: Celebrating Filipino-American History Month in Hawai‘i – From Plantation to Diaspora

Honolulu, HI — September 2025 — This Filipino-American History Month, the community is invited to FiliRooted: From Plantation to Diaspora, Filipino-American Voices in Hawai‘i Now, a month-long series of events honoring the legacies of the Sakadas while amplifying the creative voices of Filipinos in Hawai‘i today.

Presented by House of Gongs in partnership with Capitol Modern, the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (SFCA), Art+Flea, and supported by the Office of Representative Trish La Chica, the Office of City Council Member Tyler Dos Santos-Tam, University of Hawaii Manoa Center for Philippine Studies and The Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu, FiliRooted will take place at Capitol Modern on October 4, 18, and 25 with several programs that weave together music, movement, food, fashion, and storytelling.

Alongside the events, Capitol Modern will host Bamboo to Brass: Sonic Journeys Across the Philippines, a month-long glass case exhibit curated by House of Gongs and Elle Karayan Designer, Lydia Querian, featuring Indigenous Filipino musical instruments from bamboo of the northern highlands to the brass gongs of the southern islands. The exhibit highlights how instruments carry memory, identity, and rhythm across generations.

The objective of FiliRooted is two-fold: to uplift local artists, makers, and creatives in Hawai‘i while also bringing in inspiring artists from the Filipino-American Diaspora—such as Ruby Ibarra and her winning band of NPR’s 2025 Tiny Desk Contest—whose presence aims to inspire Hawai‘i’s Filipino diasporic community with stories of resilience, creativity, and empowerment.

“We’ve been producing Gongster’s Paradise in San Francisco and have presented a few local programs in Hawai’i for the last eight years. As Filipino Indigenous culture advocates who have recently connected with the āina — including our relationship with the Sakada ancestors— we are learning that Hawai‘i’s Filipino community may need this kind of medicine for empowerment and for understanding the voices they hold today.”
— Ron Querian, Artistic Director / Co-Founder, House of Gongs

This community celebration was made possible by the generosity and support of Alaska Airlines, Outrigger Hotel, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1186, Hawaii Regional Council of Carpenters – Pacific Resource Partnership, The Lawn, Plumbers & Fitters UA Local 675, Dear Flor, Tree House, Divine Creative Studio, Elle Karayan, Office of Economic Revitalization, City and County of Honolulu, KAI Hawaii, Avalon Group, Kynd Tea, and the Chamber of Commerce Hawaii.

 All events are FREE to register for the community in Hawai‘i.