The Akaka Bill... and Aztlan?

A few months ago I posted What is the "Akaka Bill"? It's a proposal in Hawai'i (did I get that right?) that would enable a racially-based government to which only native Hawai'ians could belong.

Now, see "The Akaka Bill Could Give Birth to the Nation of Aztlan":

[...the formation of Aztlan] could never happen legally you say. There could be no legal precedent for the formation of a new sovereign nation within the borders of the United States that could form the seed for such a new nation. Well, the irony is that legal precedence may come from, of all places, Hawaii.

The intent of the Akaka bill is to do just that, create a new sovereign nation within the borders of the United States. The criterion is the "blood quantum" or traceable lineage of anyone who qualifies according to the established definitions as "Hawaiian." What kind of government will be the ultimate result of such an arrangement is anybody’s guess.

Now, there will be those who will quibble as to the actual nature of the "sovereign nation" and they may be right. That is not the point of this editorial. The point is the precedence this bill will set if it passes. If Hawaiians can lay a claim to the ceded lands of Hawaii then why can't Mexicans who were forced off their land in 1848 have a similar claim?

Tue, 06/14/2005 - 17:44 · · Importance: 1