[RAW] Aloha Aina Unity March draws thousands to Waikiki

Thousands of opponents of the proposed Thirty Meter Telescope atop Hawaii island’s Mauna Kea marched through Waikiki Saturday afternoon for this year’s Aloha Aina Unity March.

Tourists, hotel workers and Hawaii residents filled the sidewalks of Kalakaua Avenue, which was closed for several hours for the event, looking on as waves of marchers in red and yellow Mauna Kea-inspired T-shirts walked down the thoroughfare through the heart of the state’s tourism epicenter. Hundreds waved Hawaii flags.

March organizers estimated that at least 20,000 people walked the two-mile route from Ala Moana Beach Park to Kapiolani Park.

Video by Cindy Ellen Russell