Urban Aloha reveals the vibrant, little-known story of Kānaka Maoli (Native Hawaiians) diaspora in Los Angeles, home to the largest Hawaiian community outside Hawai‘i. Moving beyond tourist clichés and the persistent myth that Hawaiian Gardens represents “the” Hawaiian enclave, author Lani Cupchoy traces how a diasporic community took root across the South Bay and San Gabriel Valley. Beginning with the peak migrations of the 1950s and 1960s, and driven by economic recession in the islands, the narrative follows families as they built new lives through civic clubs, newsletters, churches, restaurants, and backyard gatherings.
Drawing on oral histories, archival research, foodways, hula halau, and organizations such as the Hawaiian Inter-Club Council of Southern California, Urban Aloha explores how “Hawaiianness” shifts from identity to lived cultural community. Cupchoy examines how belonging is shaped not only by ancestry but by region, memory, leisure, and everyday practice. At once intimate and intellectually compelling, this book challenges manufactured fantasies of paradise and reveals a dynamic mainland community negotiating authenticity, representation, and cultural resilience. Richly researched and deeply human, Urban Aloha redefines what it means to be Hawaiian—on the continent and beyond.