United States federal recognition of Native Hawaiians facts for kids
Native Hawaiians are the original people of the Hawaiian Islands. After the United States became involved in the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii, laws were made to help Native Hawaiians. Some people believe these laws should give Native Hawaiians the same sovereignty (self-governance) as other indigenous groups in the United States. However, some Native Hawaiian groups worry that official recognition might stop their efforts to become an independent country again.
Contents
Understanding Hawaiian History
The Overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii
The ancestors of Native Hawaiians likely arrived in the Hawaiian Islands around 350 CE. They came from other parts of Polynesia. When Captain Cook arrived, Hawaii had a strong culture. Its population was between 400,000 and 900,000 people.
In the first 100 years after contact with Westerners, the Hawaiian population dropped a lot. This was due to civil war and sickness. By 1876, only about 53,900 people remained. American missionaries arrived in 1820 and gained much power.
Even though the United States and other nations recognized the Kingdom of Hawaii, American influence grew. With help from the United States Navy, Americans took control of the islands. The Kingdom of Hawaii was overthrown starting January 17, 1893. This was a coup d'état (a sudden, illegal takeover of government). It was planned by American and European residents in the kingdom's government. The U.S. military also helped.
There was much opposition and many tries to bring back the kingdom. But Hawaii became a U.S. territory in 1898. Native Hawaiians had no say in this. Hawaii became a U.S. state on March 18, 1959. Most voters approved of statehood in a public vote.
The U.S. Constitution sees Native American tribes as self-governing nations. The U.S. government has a duty to help them. This duty also includes Eskimos, Aleuts, and Native Alaskans. This happened with the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Over 90 years, 183 federal laws have been passed. These laws show a special relationship with Native Hawaiians. However, they do not formally recognize them as a sovereign people. This means Native Hawaiians might not get all the same benefits as other U.S. indigenous groups.
Hawaiian Homelands and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs
In 1921, the Hawaiian Homelands Commission Act set aside 200,000 acres of land. This land was for Hawaiian Homelands. But only people who were at least 50% Native Hawaiian by blood could get it. This was meant to make up for the forced colonization of the islands.
In 1959, Hawaii officially became the 50th U.S. state. The Statehood Admissions Act defined "Native Hawaiian" as anyone descended from the original people of Hawaii living there before 1778. The Ceded lands (lands once owned by the Hawaiian kingdom) were given to the State of Hawaii. This was for the "betterment of the conditions of the native Hawaiians."
In 1978, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) was created. OHA manages part of the ceded lands. It also works to improve the lives of Native Hawaiians. OHA helps preserve Hawaiian culture and protect Native Hawaiian rights. Government money has created programs, schools, and scholarships through OHA.
OHA has faced some legal challenges. In the U.S. Supreme Court case "Rice v. Cayetano", OHA was accused of unfair voting rules. The court found that OHA had violated the Fifteenth Amendment. OHA has also been questioned for helping Hawaiians with less than 50% blood quantum. This is the minimum needed for Hawaiian Homelands.
The Apology Bill and the Akaka Bill
In recent decades, Native Hawaiians became more frustrated. This frustration, along with the 100-year anniversary of the overthrow, brought the Hawaiian sovereignty movement to public attention. In 1993, President Bill Clinton signed the United States Public Law 103-150. This is known as the "Apology Bill." It apologized for U.S. involvement in the 1893 overthrow. The bill promised to work towards healing.
U.S. census data from 2000 showed about 401,162 Native Hawaiians in the United States. Sixty percent lived in the mainland U.S. Forty percent lived in Hawaii. Between 1990 and 2000, the number of people identifying as Native Hawaiian grew by 90,000. However, the number of people identifying as "pure Hawaiian" dropped to under 10,000.
Senator Daniel Akaka proposed a bill in 2009. It was called the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2009. This bill would create a legal way to set up a Hawaiian government. U.S. President Barack Obama supported the bill.
Even though the bill was meant to help, it caused much disagreement. Some Americans argued that Congress was favoring special interests. Sovereignty activists believed it would further reduce their rights. They felt it was like the 1921 blood quantum rule. In 2011, a committee started to find and check names of Native Hawaiians. This was for voting on a Native Hawaiian nation.
In June 2014, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced plans. They would hold meetings to see if Native Hawaiians could be federally recognized as an Indian tribe.
Steps Towards Recognition
The meetings held by the Department of Interior showed strong opposition. Most speakers did not want the U.S. government involved in the Hawaiian sovereignty issue.
On September 29, 2015, the United States Department of the Interior announced a plan. This plan was to recognize a Native Hawaiian government. The Native Hawaiian Roll Commission was created to find and register Native Hawaiians. This nine-member commission had experts to check Native Hawaiian ancestry. They prepared a list of registered individuals.
A nonprofit group called Na'i Aupuni planned to organize a special meeting. This meeting would create a constitution and elect representatives. They would use the list of names collected since 2011. Kelii Akina, CEO of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii, sued to see the names. He won and found serious problems. The Native Hawaiian Roll Commission then removed names of people who had died. They also removed names where addresses or emails could not be checked.
Akina sued again to stop the election. He argued that the project was funded by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. He also pointed to a Supreme Court case that stops states from holding elections based on race.
In October 2015, a federal judge allowed the process to continue. The case was appealed, and an emergency request was made to stop the voting. This request was denied.
On November 24, the emergency request was made again. This time, it went to Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. On November 27, Justice Kennedy stopped the election counting. He also stopped the naming of any representatives. In the U.S. Supreme Court case Rice v. Cayetano, Justice Kennedy wrote, "Ancestry can be a proxy for race."
The decision did not stop the voting itself. A spokesperson for Na'i Aupuni still encouraged eligible people to vote. The deadline was November 30, 2015.
The election was expected to cost about $150,000. Voting was handled by Elections America, a company from Washington D.C. The constitutional convention itself was estimated to cost $2.6 million.
