May 1 means different things in different parts of the world, but here in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, it means Lei Day, a statewide celebration of Hawaiian culture and the spirit of "aloha," that intangible sense of warmth, belonging, and connection that emanates from this isolated chain of volcanic islands. Lei Day was first celebrated in 1927 and made an official holiday in 1929. It also happens to fall on the first day of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, which honors Americans of Asian, Melanesian, Micronesian, and Polynesian heritage. May is the month the first Japanese immigrants arrived in the US in 1843, and the month the transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869 by, mostly, Chinese immigrants.
AAPI Heritage Month & Lei Day
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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A splash by the sea
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Everybody loves World Turtle Day
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All eyes on moths
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Fall for Chile
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Party like it’s 5779
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Gateway to America
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New Zealand s loneliest mountain
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A whale of a hug
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Giant kelp in the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary
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Nazar amulets, Goreme National Park, Cappadocia, Turkey
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It s Bermuda s big day
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World Lizard Day
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World Otter Day
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A day for the oceans
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Corn maze in Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania
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To Sua Ocean Trench
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Oh, the places you’ll go
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Snow on the temple
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Welcome to the Ring of Fire
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Morocco in bloom
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50 years of World Heritage Sites
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AAPI Heritage Month & Lei Day
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A desert arts pop-up, just popped up
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Keyholes to the kingdom
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European hedgehog
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National Bird Day
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A tree amid the Tetons
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A bull, some flowers, and a stratovolcano
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Shark Awareness Day
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Welcome to California