PHOTOS: Hirono, Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center Honor Legacy of Filipino Migration to Hawaii

Senator Hirono with Ethan P. Johanson (left) and APAC Acting Director Yao-Fen You (right)

~ More Photos can be found here ~

WASHINGTON, D.C. - In recognition of May as Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), in partnership with the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center (APAC), presented "Stories from the Field: Filipino Migrant Workers in Hawaii," a two-week poster exhibition exploring the migration of Filipinos to Hawaii in the early 20th century. This year marks the third consecutive collaboration between Senator Hirono and APAC to highlight the contributions AANHPI communities have made to the United States. The exhibition is open to the public for view in the rotunda of the Russell Senate Office building from Monday, May 11-Friday, May 15, and Monday, May 18-Friday, May 22.

"I am proud to host this exhibition in collaboration with APAC and help share this history of the Filipino and Filipino American communities in Hawaii," Senator Hirono said. "Throughout May, as we celebrate our communities' historic contributions, we also reaffirm our commitment to building a more inclusive and equitable future for all. This exhibition is also meaningful because 2026 marks both our nation's 250th and the 80th anniversary of the Luce-Celler Act of 1946, which granted Filipino and Indian immigrants the right to naturalize as American citizens. I will continue working to ensure that members of the AANHPI community and all people have the opportunity to live freely, and be treated with dignity and respect."

"We are deeply grateful for our ongoing partnership with Senator Hirono," said Yao-Fen You, APAC's acting director. "We appreciate the opportunity to share Smithsonian resources that document and celebrate the rich history and culture of AANHPI individuals and communities."

In the early 1900s, U.S. immigration policies curtailed the entry of Chinese and Japanese laborers into Hawaii, prompting sugar plantation owners to recruit workers from the Philippines, then a U.S. territory. As U.S. nationals, Filipinos migrated more freely and became central to Hawaii's plantation economy, comprising more than half the labor force by 1926. These workers, known as sakadas, played a vital role in shaping the islands' social and economic landscape.

The exhibition centers on the lives of two sakadas, Eusebio Maglinte and Epimaco Fariola Mansueto, tracing their journeys from the Philippines to Hawaii and onward to the continental United States. While many Filipinos established lasting communities in Hawaii, others moved on to the West Coast, including Stockton, California, which by the 1940s had become home to the largest Filipino community outside the Philippines.

Their stories continue in APAC's exhibition, "How Can You Forget Me: Filipino American Stories," currently on view at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.

Senator Hirono has long advocated on behalf of AANHPI communities in Hawaii, the U.S., and Pacific Island nations and territories. Earlier this month, Senator Hirono's resolution recognizing May as AANHPI Heritage month passed the Senate by unanimous consent. Senator Hirono also led a bipartisan, bicameral resolution recognizing October as Filipino American History Month. In February, 2025, she introduced the Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act bicameral, bipartisan legislation that would speed up the visa process for children of Filipino World War II veterans. Last year, Senator Hirono introduced the Stop Mental Health Stigma in Our Communities Act, which instructs the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to establish a national outreach and education mental health and substance misuse strategy for the AANHPI community and study and collect disaggregated data on AANHPI representation in the behavioral health workforce and behavioral health utilization rates among AANHPI youth. In 2017, Senator Hirono presented the Congressional Gold Medal, Congress' highest civilian honor, to Filipino World War II veterans.

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