Hawaiian sovereignty movement

The Hawaiian sovereignty movement (ke ea Hawaiʻi) is a grassroots political and cultural campaign to reestablish an autonomous or independent nation or kingdom of Hawaii out of a desire for sovereignty, self-determination, and self-governance. Some groups also advocate some form of redress from the United States for its 1893 overthrow of Queen Lili'uokalani, 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. Palmyra Atoll and Sikaiana were annexed by the Kingdom in the 1860s, and the movement regards them as under illegal occupation along with the Hawaiian Islands. The Apology Resolution the United States Congress passed in 1993 acknowledged that the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom was an illegal act. Sovereignty advocates have attributed problems plaguing native communities including homelessness, poverty, economic marginalization, and the erosion of native traditions to the lack of native governance and political self-determination. The forced depopulation of Kaho'olawe and its subsequent bombing, the construction of the Mauna Kea Observatories, the Red Hill water crisis caused by the US Navy's mismanagement, and participation in human trafficking of Hawaiian women by U.S. servicemen are some of the contemporary issues relevant to the sovereignty movement. It has pursued its agenda through educational initiatives and legislative actions. Along with protests throughout the islands, at the capital (Honolulu) itself and other locations sacred to Hawaiian culture, sovereignty activists have challenged U.S. forces and law. Coinciding with other 1960s and 1970s indigenous activist movements, the Hawaiian sovereignty movement was spearheaded by Native Hawaiian activist organizations and individuals who were critical of issues affecting modern Hawaii, including the islands' urbanization and commercial development, corruption in the Hawaiian Homelands program, and appropriation of native burial grounds and other sacred spaces.