Losing Paradise?
Here is another article analyzing aspects of the Akaka Bill. The author, Brian McNicoll clearly explains the race-based nature of the bill.
Oddly, under the Akaka bill, race would be the only requirement for membership in this tribe. That means that anyone who can prove he or she is a direct lineal descendant of the aboriginal, indigenous native people who resided and “exercised sovereignty” in the Hawaiian Islands on or before Jan. 1, 1893, is in. It doesn’t matter if you live in Hawaii, if you’ve ever been to Hawaii or if you participate in the native Hawaiian culture in any way.