Published • loading... • Updated
A lawsuit challenges Hawaii homestead leases limited to those with 50% Hawaiian blood
The suit says the 50% blood-quantum rule bars thousands from applying for 99-year leases and violates equal protection.
- On Monday, the Pacific Legal Foundation filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Hawaii resident Eric Ryan, challenging the state's 50% Native Hawaiian blood-quantum requirement for homestead leases as unconstitutional.
- President Warren G. Harding signed the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act in 1921 to provide land for Native Hawaiians identified as "landless and dying" following the kingdom's overthrow, establishing a program managing approximately 200,000 acres.
- With over 29,000 people on the waitlist, Hawaii offers 99-year leases for $1 a year to applicants with at least 50% Hawaiian ancestry, though Ryan was denied pre-qualification for answering no to the requirement.
- Governor Josh Green and Attorney General Anne Lopez vowed to "vigorously defend" the program as a legal and moral obligation, appointing Solicitor General Kalikoonalani Fernandes to lead the state's legal defense.
- Both sides prepare for a lengthy legal battle that could reach the Supreme Court, as the case emerges amid broader national challenges to ancestry-based policies and diversity programs.
Insights by Ground AI
27 Articles
27 Articles
Oahu man, 60, challenges Hawaiian homes policy | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
The Hawaii Attorney General will “vigorously defend” the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands from a federal civil lawsuit seeking to invalidate the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act as discriminatory and unconstitutional.
·Honolulu, United States
Read Full Article
Associated Press News+23 Reposted by 23 other sources
A lawsuit challenges Hawaii homestead leases limited to those with 50% Hawaiian blood
A lawsuit is challenging the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, which provides land to Native Hawaiians with at least 50% Hawaiian blood quantum.
·New York, United States
Read Full Article
Coverage Details
Total News Sources27
Leaning Left6Leaning Right2Center12Last UpdatedBias Distribution60% Center
Bias Distribution
- 60% of the sources are Center
60% Center
L 30%
C 60%
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
