1993 Centennial
Commemoration of the
American overthrow of the Hawaiian
Kingdom at
‘ Iolani Palace, Honolulu
Over 15,000 people marched to ‘Iolani Palace, residence
of our last monarch, Queen Lili‘uokalani, to protest
the 1893 American military invasion of our country in support
of an all-white, all-male “Committee of 13” which,
with the aid of American marines and at the instigation
of the American Minister, Stevens, seized political power.
Re-naming themselves the "Provisional Government," the
Committee requested immediate recognition by the United
States, and eventual annexation. President Cleveland, however,
withdrew the pending annexation legislation, sending Commissioner
Blount to investigate the overthrow. Upon reading Blount's
report, Cleveland concluded the following:
“The lawful government of Hawai‘i
was overthrown without the drawing of a sword or the
firing of
a shot by a process
every step of which is directly traceable to and
dependent for its success upon the agency of the
United States acting
through its diplomatic and naval representatives...
“By an act of war, committed with the participation of
a diplomatic representative of the United States
and without
authority of Congress, the Government of a friendly
and confiding people has been overthrown. A substantial wrong
has thus been committed which a due regard for
our national character as well as the rights of the injured people
requires we should endeavor to repair.”
The Hawaiian
government was never restored. In 1898, Hawai‘i
was annexed by the United States, without public referendum
of any kind.
The march was organized by the single
largest sovereignty organization at the time, Ka Lahui
Hawai‘i. My sister,
Mililani Trask, was the elected governor of Ka Lahui,
while I was the Director of the Hawaiian Studies Center.
Ka Lahui
led the march. Hula masters also attended, along
with our South Sea Polynesian cousins who participated
with chants
in their own language.
The key political demand for
Hawaiian self-government was the purpose and the focus
of the march. But in
2004, more
than ten years later, Hawaiians remain under the
military and political subjugation of the United
States.
