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Issue 9.12: Cunning Lingle
What Governor Linda Lingle said in a Sept. 7, 2005 Associated Press story about fears that the Akaka Bill would lead Native Hawaiians to secede from the U.S.:
September 15, 2005
"We have over 500 recognized Indian tribes in America. They don't secede, they simply get a federal recognition that allows them to avoid these kinds of lawsuits that Hawaiians have faced."
What she didn't say:
The lawsuits Native Hawaiians "have faced" usually involve them suing to reassert their claims over lands that the U.S. Government seized following the 1893 overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy. But hey—once the Akaka Bill passes, they won't have to worry about those pesky, horrible lawsuits anymore, because they'll have the same rights and privileges as Native Americans. And we all know what kind of Renaissance they're going through these days.
-Anthony Pignataro