Photo exhibit shares Hawaii’s role in 1965 Selma-Montgomery march

By Elle Vincioni

evincioni@staradvertiser.com

A collection of rare historic photographs of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery march were unveiled in a ceremony Tuesday at the state Capitol to honor Hawaii’s role in one of the most defining moments of the Civil Rights Movement.

Twenty-eight photos by photographer Matt Herron — more than half of which have never been seen before — were donated by his widow, Jeannine Herron.

Matt Herron captured a historic time in American history, led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., when five Hawaii delegates traveled to Alabama to advocate for racial justice and equal voting rights.

“These images do more than just document an event,” said acting Lt. Gov. Keith Regan. “They capture a powerful reminder that the fight for civil rights was not confined to one place or one people. It was strengthened by individuals and communities across the country — across oceans — who believed in the dignity and equality of all.”

Nona (Springel) Ferdon, Glenn Izutsu, Robert Browne, Charles Campbell and Linus Pauling Jr. draped 48 lei across movement leaders, including King, and fellow

A collection of 28 images was donated by Jeannine Herron, widow of photographer Matt Herron. The photos were taken in 1965, when a Hawaii delegation traveled to Alabama for the historic march led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The Hawaii delegates had brought 48 lei with them to present to movement leaders. A woman viewed the exhibit that was unveiled Tuesday.

PHOTOS BY

MICHELLE BIR /

SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER

Deloris Guttman, a researcher with the African American Diversity Cultural Center of Hawaii, participated in the unveiling of the Matt Herron collection Tuesday at the acting Lt. Gov. Keith Regan’s office. The collection was donated to the state.

protesters, to symbolize aloha and solidarity.

Honolulu Star-Bulletin reporter Tomi (Kaizawa) Knaefler was with them — a piece of the Honolulu Star-Advertiser legacy — and the last living member of the six Hawaii participants.

Donated by the Rev. Abraham Akaka, the lei were made with the pua of Kawaiaha‘o Church’s plumeria trees, which still bloom today.

“The lei carried from Hawai‘i to Selma symbolized solidarity, hope and a shared commitment to human dignity,” said Lt. Gov. Regan in a press release.

As the Kahu (senior pastor or shepherd) of the church and friend of King, Christianity and civil rights were inextricably tied to one another for Akaka.

In one of many letters sent to King, Akaka wrote, “History will honor this hour because His chosen servant was faithful and a great nation responded to that faithfulness.”

His son, Jeffrey Akaka, M.D., said his father lived aloha and his faith through his advocacy for others.

As the chaplin of the Hawaii Territorial Legislature, Rev. Akaka also famously delivered the “The Statehood” sermon on March 13, 1959, at Kawaiaha‘o Church — where he led for nearly 30 years — and shared the meaning of aloha he came to know.

“Aloha consists of this new attitude of heart, above negativism, above legalism,” Akaka said in his sermon. “It is the unconditional desire to promote the true good of other people in a friendly spirit, out of a sense of kinship. Aloha seeks to do good, with no conditions attached … One of the sweetest things about the love of God, about Aloha, is that it welcomes the stranger and seeks his good.”

Since then, Hawaii has been known as “the Aloha State.”

On Sept. 17, 1959, King addressed the first Hawaii Legislature.

“… And you can never know what it means to those of us caught for the moment in the tragic and often dark midnight of man’s inhumanity to man, to come to a place where we see the glowing daybreak of freedom and dignity and racial justice,” King said in his speech.

“Hawaii stood out as the exemplar that Dr. King kept with him the rest of his life,” explained State Archivist Adam Jansen.

Steven Springel, protester Ferdon’s son, donated the blue jacket that Ferdon wore during the march to the Hawaii State Archives — worn by daughter Des’ree Springel at the ceremony.

“Mom’s message was always the same,” he said. “Always have aloha in your hearts for your fellow human beings. But also, you have to stand up and work for change. It doesn’t just happen.”

As a lifelong civil rights activist, he said that Ferdon returned to Alabama two more times in the next two years. She also protested the Vietnam War in Hawaii, the Iraq War in London and notably opened the Boston Psychological Center for Women as a leader in the Women’s Rights Movement.

“That was such a thoughtful thing for the people of Hawai‘i to send those to the leaders of the march, and I’m glad they had signs that said ‘We’re from Hawai‘i,’” Jeannine Herron said in a press release. “It was remarkable they came so far to walk in a 50-mile walk.”

Unable to travel to Oahu to attend the ceremony, Herron was represented by family friend Michael DiMaggio, who played a significant role researching and identifying people in the photographs.

He explained this was difficult because most of the Hawaii marchers had died, and Selma protesters and the families who hosted them were quiet about their participation due to the dangers of speaking out then.

“Their struggles — documented in these photos — that they bled for; in some cases died for, can never be forgotten,” Jansen said.

The exhibit in the Lieutenant Governor’s Ceremonial Room is open to the public through July 7 during regular business hours as an official America250 Hawaii event.

Acting Lt. Gov. Keith Regan delivered remarks at the ceremony commemorating the donation of the photo collection from the Matt Herron archives. The photos document a delegation from Hawaii presenting lei to Martin Luther King Jr. and participating in the historic Selma to Montgomery march in Alabama.

PHOTOS BY

MICHELLE BIR /

SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER

Above, State Archivist Adam Jansen unveiled the donated photo collection in the executive chambers of Acting Lt. Gov. Keith Regan Tuesday. At left, Steven Springel, right, with his daughter Des’ree Springel, donated a jacket worn by his mother, Nona Springel Ferdon, who was part of Hawaii’s delegation to the Selma-Montgomery march.