Title: Who are Native Hawaiians? | Mana‘o Ulu Wale - Random Musings
Headings: 
Who are Native Hawaiians?
The Creation
Kaulana Na Pua
A Long Time Coming
Ceded Lands
Hawaiians Today
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Content: American merchants and plantation owners had a stranglehold on the islands’ rich economy, and Hawai‘i’s strategic location in the Pacific made it an invaluable military base. It was therefore with great trepidation that the U.S. watched as the Hawaiian government strengthened its ties with European nations, as well as worked to reestablish control of Hawaiian lands and wealth. In response, American merchants called upon the U.S. military to aid in the overthrow of the Kingdom, a nation which had been allied by treaty to the United States for more than seventy years. In 1893, U.S. Marines forced Queen Lili‘uokalani to abdicate, disbanded Parliament, and installed a group of American businessmen as the leaders of the new Provisional Government. Two years later, the deposed queen was imprisoned. With this overthrow, the Hawaiian people marked the suspension of their political sovereignty. Under martial law, Hawaiians were forced to either swear allegiance to the new Republic or relinquish their voting rights. The Hawaiian language was banned, and Hawaiian culture and arts were deemed subversive. Nearly two million acres of Hawaiian government and crown lands were confiscated. Tens of thousands of Hawaiians protested, including Queen Lili‘uokalani who petitioned Congress to return her nation. “