What's the deal with the Akaka bill?

[question everything]

Supposedly will "create a commission that determines who is a Native Hawaiian, and then establishes the criteria for creating a separate, parallel legal system for them."

Is it, really? Why?

[sinkingfeeling]

1. Native Hawaiians are in the same category as all Native Americans.

Support for this was bought by the ANWR vote. Remember the two Hawaiian Senators voted for the provision to drill in the funding bill and Alaska's GOP Senators said they would support this?

[Freddie Stubbs]

2. They currently are not in the same category

This bill would give them many of the rights that Native Americans have.

[question everything]

3. Should they?

Were they kicked from their land, their homes destroyed and their women abused?

Sorry, am not familiar with this aspect of our history..

[sinkingfeeling]

4. Sorry that was what I was trying to say. They should be equal to

all other Native Americans.

[Norquist Nemesis]

5. It probably also has something to do with the recent decision

knocking down a private Hawaiian school's policy and to only admit Native Hawaiians...even though they receive no federal money.

"HONOLULU, Hawaii (AP) -- A federal appeals court Tuesday struck down the exclusive Kamehameha Schools' policy of admitting only Native Hawaiians, saying it amounts to unlawful racial discrimination."

http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/08/02/hawaiian.school.ap/