Hawaii

2007-07-12T01:51:14Z

Toraisultimate: /* History */

[[Image:Hawaii_State_Flag.gif|thumb|right|The state flag of Hawaii.]]

'''Hawaii''' is a part of the [[United States of America]]. It was the fiftieth (last) state to enter into the union. In 2005 it had a population of 1,275,194 on 6,423 square miles of land.<ref>http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0108204.html</ref> It is located in the Pacific Ocean west and south of the mainland of the United States.

==History==

The Hawaiian Islands were discovered in 1778 by Captain [[James Cook]]. The native Hawaiians were Polynesians and worshiped tiki gods. In the decades after Cook's visit the islands were united under one chief and eventually became dominated by Christianity through the use of missionaries and oppresive outlawing of ancient Hawaiian cultural practices and language.

Hawaii became united under King Kamehameha who forced all independent kingdoms in the Hawaiian Islands to join a Hawaiian Kingdom under his rule. He did not do this via diplomacy or by elections. He did it by conquest.

The Hawaiian Kingdom flourished throughout the 19th century with several monarchs. It became increasingly westernized. This modernization of Hawaiian society eventually lead to the Hawaiian Revolution of 1893 when the United States of America overthrew Queen Liliuokalani in response to her attempt to propose a new constitution increasing her native influence. The revolution was successful with no loss of life. The new Hawaiian government was set up as the Republic of Hawaii and it was recognized by every nation which had recognized the Hawaiian Kingdom though now a part of the USA through annexation and eventual statehood.

During the Hawaiian Revolution, American troops landed to show military might. They did not engage in fighting and did not occupy any government buildings. However, this action has lead many historical revisionists to claim that the United States invaded Hawaii and deposed the Queen. American President [[Grover Cleveland]] was cautious about the Hawaiian Revolution and he sent [[James Henderson Blount]] to Hawaii to investigate it. Blount concluded that the American diplomats and military commanders abused thier powers during the overthrow. President Cleveland then cited numerous wrong doings to which he later back away from. His report is cited as evidence of an illegal takeover of Hawaii by some Native Hawaiians to this day.

An investigation of the Hawaiian Revolution was conducted by [[Congress]] in 1894. Congress issued the Morgan Report which refuted the Blount Report and cleared the United States, by their own view, of any wrong doing during the Hawaiian Revolution. Recently, the United States Congress issued an official apology to the Native Hawaiians for the deposition of the Hawaiian kingdom to which they recognized as illegal. Many historians cite the Hawaiian annexation as the first sign of American Imperialism.

The Republic of Hawaii agreed to join the United States as a territory in 1898. Congress annexed Hawaii via a Joint Resolution of Congress which was the same way [[Texas]] was annexed by the USA.

Hawaii was attacked by Japan on December 7, 1941. This resulted in the death of many Americans and brought the United States into [[World War Two]]. The people of Hawaii were very helpful in the eventual American victory.

Hawaiian citizens voted overwhelmingly (93%) to join the USA. It was accordingly added as the 50th American state in 1959. The United Nations recognized this as legal under international law by removing Hawaii from the list of non self-governing territories.

==Politics==

Since statehood, Hawaii has been dominated by the [[Democratic Party]]. [[John Kerry]] carried the state electoral vote in 2004 and the entire Congressional delegation is made up of Democrats. The [[Republican Party]] has made some recent progress with the current governor being a Republican. There is also a small separatist movement on the islands which wishes to have Hawaii secede from the USA and form an independent Hawaiian nation. Proponents of this course argue that Hawaii was illegally annexed and should be "restored" to nationhood. The overwhelmingly majority of Hawaiians do not support this view and the separatists remain a small but vocal minority.

==Tourism==

Hawaii is the United States' only state in the tropics and a favorite tourist attraction known for its beaches and volcanoes.

[[Category:US state]]

==Sources==
*[http://www.mythichawaii.com An excellent look at how the tiki gods worshiping Hawaiians behaved before conversion to Christianity. Including their savage warriors weapons ''Mythic Hawaii'']
*[http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/15000.html Hawaii Quick Facts from the US Census Bureau]
*[http://www.historyofnations.net/oceania/hawaii.html History of Hawaii]
*[http://morganreport.org/ Morgan Report]

==References==

<References/>

[[Category:US state]]
[[Category:Islands]]

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Hawaii