Hawaiian in Ohio: A Celebration of “Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and Asian American Heritage Month”

Native Hawaiian and Ohio-resident poet/musician/artist Joe Balaz presents a FREE performance of retrospective and recent poetry, artwork, and music including selections of his well-known poetry work written in Hawaiian Islands Pidgin (HIP, also formerly known as Hawaiʻi Creole English) followed by a conversation with Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library Coordinator Don Boozer and an audience Q&A. Balaz was born and raised in Wahiawa on the island of O’ahu with ancestry that encompasses Hawaii, Slovakia, and Ireland. His album of pidgin poetry, Electric Laulau (1998), is considered a foundational text in Kanaka Maoli (native Hawaiian) literature.