Quote by Haunani-Kay Trask: “Hawaii is not a state, it is a nation.”

This statement challenges the political status of Hawaii, asserting its inherent right to self-determination as an independent cultural and political entity, rather than just a part of another country. It's a call for recognition of indigenous sovereignty.

Trask was a leading voice in the Hawaiian sovereignty movement, challenging the narrative of Hawaii's annexation by the US and advocating for the restoration of indigenous governance and cultural practices in the post-Cold War era.

Native Hawaiian scholar, poet, and activist who was a professor at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and a leading voice for Hawaiian sovereignty. Her 1993 book From a Native Daughter challenged Western academic accounts of Hawaiian history. She co-founded the Kamana Hawaiian Studies program.