Black Community Archive of Hawaiʻi
The Black Community Archive of Hawaiʻi collects, preserves, and shares the intellectual and material history of Black community life in ka pae ‘āina ʻo Hawaiʻi.
Our archive cross-indexes documents relating to people of African descent from other collections, dating back to the early 19th century, the archives of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, and the early period of US occupation of Hawaiʻi.
We also source and collect audio and video recordings, ephemera, oral histories, and images documenting the political and cultural life of people of African descent in Hawaiʻi through the twentieth century to the present.
This is an archive of our community, for our community, and by us.
What’s a community archive?
A community archive is collected, described, and preserved by individuals and community groups who want to document their community life. Not everyone who contributes to our archive is a historian or archivist and the Black Community Archive is certainly not the only archive that preserves the history of Black people in Hawai’i. However, our archive in particular is interested in the every day lives, politics, creativity, and material culture of Black people living in Hawai’i. As a community archive, we actively invite collaboration and sharing of materials. If you would like to join us please get in touch!
