Some are concerned American Samoans could lose their indigenous political system and land rights, comparing it to what happened to Native Hawaiians. - NBCAsianAmerica
To become U.S. citizens, American Samoans living in the states go through an expedited version of the naturalization process that is usually for foreign-born nationals. There are about 180,000 people with Samoan descent living in the states.
"The judge recognized that the 14th Amendment citizenship clause required that anybody born on sovereign U.S. soil is entitled to full citizenship,” Ala’ilima said. “The 14th amendment was passed after the Civil War to correct the previous Constitution, which recognized different levels of nationality in the U.S. — they allowed slaves."
“There’s no nobility in America,” said Kruse, when talking about the Fa’amatai political system. “There would be continuous lawsuits, because our customs are contrary, and it is anomalous to the United States.” “When you live here in American Samoa your family gives you land and it is up to you to make a home from it or grow things to serve the family/chief,” Pilcher said. “There are very sacred bonds between us and our land and our water. Land and water are extensions of our identity. So if you take away our land and water, you are not just severing us from economic mobility, you are killing part of our identity.
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