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THE SENATE                           S.C.R. NO.            S.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                    SENATE  CONCURRENT
                        RESOLUTION

  REQUESTING THAT THE PRESIDENT AND CONGRESS RECOGNIZE AN
    OFFICIAL POLITICAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES
    GOVERNMENT AND THE NATIVE HAWAIIAN PEOPLE.



 1        WHEREAS, on the 100th anniversary of the illegal overthrow
 2   of the Kingdom of Hawaii, Congress enacted Public Law 103-150
 3   to acknowledge the historical significance and ramifications of
 4   the overthrow in order to provide a proper foundation for
 5   reconciliation between the United States and the Native
 6   Hawaiian people; and
 7   
 8        WHEREAS, in Public Law 103-150, Congress acknowledged the
 9   participation of the United States in the suppression of the
10   inherent sovereignty of the Native Hawaiian people, thereby
11   solidifying the varied positions of previous administrations
12   disputing responsibility; and
13   
14        WHEREAS, Congress expressed its commitment and urged
15   presidential support for reconciliation between the United
16   States and the Native Hawaiian people; and
17   
18        WHEREAS, the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Rice
19   v. Cayetano, although narrowly focusing on the
20   constitutionality of a voting restriction, challenges Congress'
21   treatment of Native Hawaiians as similar to Native Americans
22   and Alaska Natives in over 150 pieces of federal legislation
23   and reinforces the importance of obtaining a clear statement
24   from Congress on the political status of Native Hawaiian people
25   to effectuate the intent of Public Law 103-150; and
26   
27        WHEREAS, Congress has acknowledged that the Native
28   Hawaiian people are determined to preserve, develop, and
29   transmit to future generations, their ancestral territory and
30   their cultural identity in accordance with their own spiritual
31   and traditional beliefs, customs, practices, language, and
32   social institutions; now, therefore,
33   

 
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                                  S.C.R. NO.            S.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1        BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twentieth Legislature
 2   of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2000, the House of
 3   Representatives concurring, that the federal government is
 4   requested to recognize an official political relationship
 5   between the United States government and the Native Hawaiian
 6   people; and
 7   
 8        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
 9   Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the President of the
10   United States, the Majority Leader of the United States Senate,
11   the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, each
12   member of Hawaii's Congressional Delegation, the Governor of
13   the State of Hawaii, and the Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian
14   Affairs.