HGTV has broken its silence amid the controversy surrounding a recent episode of “Renovation Aloha,” after apparent human remains were shown on television.
“We take the concerns raised by the Native Hawaiian community very seriously and are committed to ensuring our programming is respectful and appropriate,” a spokesperson for the network told People on Tuesday, April 21. “We apologize to anyone who found any part of the episode offensive, as that was not HGTV’s intention.”
HGTV re-edited the episode, titled “Bones on the Big Island,” which originally aired on Tuesday, April 14, to remove footage of the remains, according to Deadline.
Kamohai and Tristyn Kalama Address the Controversy
On April 16, just two days after the episode aired, Kamohai and Tristyn Kalama opened up about the discovery in an Instagram Live.
“The careful consideration of going through this episode — for us, nothing means more to us than our family, our culture, and our history and heritage,” Kamohai said. “And the land that we are honored to call home.”
He went on to say that they notified the police as soon as the discovery was made.
“The police archeologists said just leave the bones, they didn’t need to do anything further at that time,” Tristyn explained. “This was something we would never build on. Now it was about what is the proper cultural protocol?”
What Is ‘Iwi Kūpuna’?
Iwi kūpuna refers to the ancestral bones or skeletal remains of Native Hawaiians and are considered sacred.
According to a civil complaint filed against the couple, iwi kūpuna are afforded “the highest level of protection,” People reported on Tuesday, April 21.
Hawaiian law prohibits the “taking, appropriation, excavation, destruction, or alteration of burial sites,” the outlet explained, adding, “the photography of those remains is ‘prohibited, unless written consent is first obtained’ from relevant authorities.”
The Kalamas are accused of “[posting] video and photographic content to their public Instagram account (@kamohaiandtristyn) that appears to depict the human skeletal remains,” People shared, per the complaint.
Kamohai explained in the couple’s Instagram Live, “We were put in touch with our kūpuna that know the proper protocol for a situation like that..”
Tristyn added, “We did reach out to the state preservation department many, many times…Once everybody understood that we had no intention of building on that lot, ever, and never will, it was about the ultimate sign of respect, is to, leave, protect in place.”
“I knew that this episode was going to be an experience for the viewer watching and for us to live it because it’s a very culturally significant thing that we’re talking about,” she continued. “I can only control how we handled it and what we have control over.”
The couple received love and support from fans in the comments section of their post.
“You two are the most authentic and kind people 🙌 ❤️” one follower wrote.
Another added, “Your show is relevant enough that you should be able to push to become executive producers where you’ll have more say in what’s shown. Others have successfully done that and I think the shows will reflect even more so your values. Hang in there. 🤙🤙”
A third wrote, “There is no question how you both love your culture and family heritage. The honor you show is always evident.”
