Evil Deeds Equals Gaining Power
The Overthrow of Hawaii
Thesis
The annexation of Hawaii could not have happened without these three important people; Minister John L. Stevens, President Grover Cleveland, and President Benjamin Harrison. They all contributed to the annexation in their own way. But it was not right to manipulate and force the Hawaiians into annexation.
Minister John L. Stevens
He held a political office in Hawaii. He believed that the Hawaiians were unable to rule so his mission was to overthrow the Hawaiian Kingdom. During Queen Liliuokalani’s reign he was the one who sent troops to Iolani palace to make her surrender. That action he took was successful because she did surrender not to the troops but to the United States.
President Grover Cleveland
During the whole time foreigners (Americans) wanted to annex Hawaii to the United States he was the only president so disagreed with it. He believed that the overthrow of Hawaii was an act of war. So he tried to give Queen Liliuokalani back her power. But when Americans said that he would have to kill them in order to give back her power, he stopped trying, and tried to "ignore" what was happening to the Hawaiians.
President William Harrison
He was the president during the reign of Kalakaua and during the annexation of Hawaii to the United States. He was for the annexation of Hawaii so during his presidency he tried to negotiate a treaty to annex Hawaii. He sent it to the Senate to be ratified but the Senate declined the treaty.
So after all the efforts at trying to annex Hawaii to the United States, the United States was successful. It was immoral and illegal because they used force and manipulation to annex Hawaii. But nobody really tried to stop this from happening and the United States got exactly what they wanted.
Citation
Everett, Colleen . "The Role of the United States government in the Overthrow." , Waipahu. 9 Mar. 2015. Lecture.
"John L. Stevens." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 12 Mar. 2015.