Separatist Movements in USA

Legal status of Hawaii

The legal status of Hawaii -- as opposed to its political status -- is a subject of increasing scholarly and legal debate. While Hawaii is broadly accepted as a state of the United States of America in mainstream understanding, there is a growing body of critique regarding this assumption. The viewpoint that Hawaiʻi is in fact legally an independent nation under U.S. occupation is spreading rapidly in academic circles, school curriculum, the U.N. and other international forums, and daily dialogue in Hawaiʻi. The legality of control of Hawaiʻi by the United States has also been brought up in cases in the U.S. Supreme Court, in U.S. District Court, and in international legal actions. Outside of Hawaiʻi, however, this legal debate is still relatively unknown.

The main issues surrounding the legal status of Hawaii are:

• The role of the United States in the Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom;

• The Queen's protest and unanswered request for intervention;

• The Queen's abdication, including legal issues of duress and applicability;

• The legality of Annexation under U.S. and International Laws;

• Treaties between the United States and Hawaiʻi;

• Hawaii's international standing, including membership in the Family of Nations and treaty relationships with other countries;

• The validity of the Statehood Plebiscite;

• The removal by the United States of Hawaii from the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories Eligible for Decolonization without consultation, and the potential reinstatement and application of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1514 to Hawaiʻi;

• The Kingdom lands seized in the Overthrow and subsequently granted in fee to the Territory and State by the United States;

• International Human Rights issues, including provisions of the Genocide Convention;

• Environmental protection issues in general;

• Environmental cleanup issues (particularly military ordinance and contamination);

• International Native Rights issues (e.g. U.N. DRIP);

• Native and Non-Native self-determination; and

• Enforcement.

The legal issues regarding Hawaiʻi's international standing are complex. While many scholars and legal experts feel that the case for legal independence is clear, the practical ability to actually assert such independence is difficult. Some complicating factors include:

• The continued presence of the U.S. military in Hawaiʻi;

• The assumed reluctance of the U.S. to give up its claim to Hawaiʻi, legal or not;

• The powerful influence of the U.S. within the United Nations and other international bodies, and the ability of the U.S. to place pressure on these bodies;

• Complex issues regarding population diversity, especially considering that the majority of Hawaii's population is comprised of non-native recent (post-1893) immigrants, many of whom hold great political power and influence;

• Complex issues regarding land tenure;

• Complex issues regarding immigration and emigration;

• Complex issues regarding economic basis for self-sufficiency;

• Issues regarding national protection from invasion; and

• The effects of long-term colonization

The Hawaiian sovereignty movement is a political movement seeking some form of sovereignty for Hawai'i. Generally, the movement's focus is on self-determination and self-governance, either for Hawaiʻi as an independent nation, or for people of whole or part native Hawaiian ancestry, or for "Hawaiian nationals" descended from subjects of the Hawaiian Kingdom or declaring themselves as such by choice. Some groups advocate redress from the United States for the 1893 overthrow of Queen Liliʻuokalani, and for what is described as a prolonged military occupation beginning with the 1898 annexation. The movement generally views both the overthrow and annexation as illegal, and holds the U.S. government responsible. The historical and legal basis for these claims is one of considerable dispute. While groups that comprise the movement share common concerns, their views on solutions vary greatly, ranging from establishing of some form of "Nation within a Nation" government (similar to some Native American tribes), to reparations from the US government for historical grievances and an end to American military presence, to outright independence from the US.