July 31 is a national holiday known as La Ho’iho’i Ea (Sovereignty Restoration Day). King Kamehameha I established this holiday as a days-long celebration following the rightful return of sovereign government to Hawaii by the United Kingdom, after an illegal seizure by one of their representatives. He proclaimed, “Ua mau ke ea o ka ‘aina i ka pono,” the sovereignty, life, breath of our lands is perpetuated through justice. Hawaiians continue to breathe life into our sovereignty, and one way we do this is to celebrate ka La Hoihoi Ea. After decades of suppression, the celebrations were revived in 1985 by Uncle Kekuni Blaisdell and other kānaka aloha ‘āina as a way to give voice to Hawaiian independence and to issues surrounding the return and demilitarization of Hawaiian lands.