Was it wrong for the us to take hawaii or did we help the ntive people?

Question

Was it wrong for the us to take hawaii or did we help the ntive people?

Answer 1

It was definitely not correct for the US to take Hawaii in the way that the US did.  Certainly there were some big advantages for the US to control Hawaii: chiefly, it was a great place for ships to stop and refuel with coal on the way to and from Asia, it enabled the US to become a more powerful nation, and the US also got access to sugar.  However, the way the US took over Hawaii was illegitimate, and in no way helped the native Hawaiians

Key background info: US sugar planters had bought up land and started to import laborers, throwing local Hawaiians out of work and siphoning off their sources of income.  The Hawaiian king, Kalakaua, was pressured into changing laws and restricting the right to vote to those who owned land only, disenfranchising most Hawaiians.

In 1893, Queen Lilioukalani decided to challenge this, and declared that Hawaii must be for the Hawaiians.  She pushed for a new constitution that would give the monarchy more rights and restore Hawaiian control over the islands.  Not shockingly, the white business leaders disliked this idea, and the coalition led by Sanford Dole (yeah, the Pineapple company guy) got the Marines to come in, barricade the Queen in her palace, and get her to abdicate.  President Grover Cleveland, to his credit, disagreed and ordered her to be put back on the throne, but the Provisional Government actually refused.  There were a couple of Congressional inquests, but nothing resulted of these that led to the Queen being reinstalled.  Under President McKinley, the US annexed Hawaii in 1898.

So, long answer short.  yes it was wrong.  No it did not particularly help the Native people at that time, nor did it help in the immediate future..  Of course, it could be noted that ultimately, it pretty much did benefit them when they got the benefits of US citizenship and statehood after 1959,,,

Answer 2

Both.  It's not an easy question to answer.