HO'OMANA MAU
"Always Remember"
The Heart Remembers What The Mind Forgets
Minister John Stevens
Minister John L. Stevens was sent here from the United States to be a minister to the Hawaiian people. He was accused of planning to overthrow the Queen with the Committee of Safety. Minister John L. Stevens called in American soldiers because he was afraid the Hawaiians would cause riots and fights. The soldiers never fired a shot. They were just trying to keep things in order. He was the one that said if Cleveland wanted the soldiers to leave and give Hawaii back then, he needed to shoot the soldiers. A Provisional Government came about, and he recognized them and gave his blessing to this “new government”. He helped with the idea of the annexation of Hawaii. Later when asked why he wanted to Overthrow Hawaii, he replied that, “the Queen was immoral and so she needed to be dethroned”. Stevens was forced to retire in 1893 because of the overthrow of Hawaii. Stevens raised the American Flag over ‘Iolani Place on January 17, 1893.
President Benjamin Harrison
Harrison was the president from the year 1889-1893. Harrison wanted to make Hawaii apart of the United States because of Pearl Harbor, and wanting to “expand the American influence” in Hawaii. Pearl Harbor was the main reason for wanting to annex Hawaii, because Harrison wanted to build naval base. Harrison signed a treaty for the annexation of Hawaii and sent it off to congress to get conformation. This led to native Hawaiians forming a “Patriotic League” in 1897 stating that they are against the annexation. The League had victory in this because only 42 Senates voted for the treaty, but it wasn’t enough. Their victory didn’t last very long. At this time, the Spanish American war was going on. This specific event is what brought the annexation up again. Congress wanted Hawaii because it would be a great fueling area since it’s in the middle of the pacific ocean. Harrison forced King Kalakaua to sign the Bayonet Constitution in the year 1887 that restricted the power of the Hawaiian Monarchy.
President Grover Cleveland
Cleveland was the President of the United States from the year 1893- 1897. Cleveland was an anti-imperialist meaning, he was against the U.S. trying to annex Hawaii. Harrison submitted a treaty to the senate so that they could go ahead with the annexation of Hawaii. At the time, Cleveland took over Harrisons’ place as President and withdrew the treaty that sent to congress. He later sent a man named James Blount to investigate what was going on in the islands. When the investigation was concluded, he said that the overthrow of Hawaii was illegal and immoral, so President Cleveland “recommended” to congress that Hawaiian Monarchy be restored. Also, that the queen receive her power back. Cleveland was for the Hawaiians and wanted to give their land back. Congress never restored the monarchy, and Queen Liliuokalani was said guilty of treason and was placed under house arrest, until she died.
Significants of the Overthrow
The hawaiian people will never forget the day they lost their land, January 17, 1893. They'll never forget the 3 men that made this overthrow happen. The long term significance is that Hawaii is now a state and they have access to Pearl Harbor all the time. What I want people to get from my project is that Many people were involved in overthrowing Hawaii and that it wasn't right. The hawaiian people will never forget what happened to their land and what they did to their queen. It was a very upsetting and heartbreaking day for the hawaiians.
Are We Legally and Lawfully a State to the US?
In my opinion, Hawaii is not a state Legally and Lawfully. The United States didn’t write a treaty for Queen Liliuokalani to sign. They just took over their land. Dole put himself in charge even though he wasn’t ordered to be. President Cleveland told congress to restore Hawaii’s Monarchy but they didn’t listen and Dole took it upon himself to overthrow the Monarchy instead.
Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka Aina I Ka PONO
Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka Aina I Ka Pono means, “the life of the land is perpetuated in sovereignty.” In this song, Israel Kamakawiwo’ole refers to the Kings and Queen of Hawaii and how they would feel if they were alive today and seen what our land has become. The land was very important to them and if they seen these roads and buildings they would be sad and hurt. They would cry because this isn’t what they would’ve wanted for their people or for their land. He repeats Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka Aina I Ka Pono multiple times to emphasize the meaning for people to know that even though we are a state to the U.S., the life of the land will always be perpetuated in sovereignty.
Citations
"Committee of Safety (Hawaii)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 09 Mar. 2015.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Committee_of_Safety_(Hawaii)
"Digital History." Digital History. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Mar. 2015.
"The 1897 Petition Against the Annexation of Hawaii." National Archives and Records Administration. National Archives and Records Administration, n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2015.
http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/hawaii-petition/
"Benjamin Harrison." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 09 Mar. 2015.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Harrison
"John L. Stevens." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 09 Mar. 2015.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_L._Stevens
http://patriotspokenword.com/home/patriotic/people/president-benjamin-harrison
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover_Cleveland
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Leavitt_Stevens.jpg