The U.S. Constitution Still Applies to Hawaii!

by Keli'i Akina, Ph.D., President/CEO, Grassroot Institute of Hawaii, December 18, 2015

One of the winners in the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to halt the State of Hawaii's race-based election is the U.S. Constitution itself.  

Like an anchor in rough waters, the Constitution has brought back a measure of stability (and sanity!) to Hawaii government and society.  And the value of the Constitution is being sounded in many quarters. For example, even pro-sovereignty Hawaiian activists have condemned the state for violating the Constitution. 

Just as profound, University of Hawaii law professor Williamson Chang, a leading promoter of the "illegal overthrow" theory, has given Civil Beat a worthwhile statement about the Constitutional amendment that prohibits race-based elections. Musing on the state's effort to bypass the Supreme Court injunction that halted the Na'i Apuni election, Chang criticized the action on the basis of a fundamental Constitutional principle:

"You cannot sidestep the 15th Amendment by creating a process which permits a race-based election, then when declared illegal, allows the governor or some other entity like Nai Aupuni to appoint only persons of one race to the positions that were up for election. That would completely defeat the purpose of the 15th Amendment."

It looks like the Constitution deserves to take a bow.

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