Celebrating the 4th of July

Celebrating the 4th of July isn't as big of a deal here in Hawaii.  There are certainly some fireworks, but nothing compared to how we celebrate New Year's Eve.

For those of you who don't know, the kingdom of Hawaii was taken over my a military coup, largely sponsored by the US government.  An excerpt from Wikipedia (which largely has this one right).

Until the 1890s the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi was an independent sovereign state, recognized by the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, and Germany. Though there were threats to Hawaii's sovereignty throughout the Kingdom's history, it was not until the signing, under duress, of the Bayonet Constitution in 1887, that this threat began to be realized. On January 17, 1893, the last monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, Queen Lili'uokalani, was deposed in a coup d'état led largely by American citizens who were opposed to Lili'uokalani's attempt to establish a new Constitution. The success of the coup efforts was supported by the landing of U.S. Marines, who came ashore at the request of the conspirators. The coup left the queen imprisoned at Iolani Palace under house arrest. The sovereignty of the Kingdom of Hawaii was lost to a Provisional Government led by the conspirators, later briefly becoming the Republic of Hawaii, before eventual annexation to the United States in 1898. One hundred years later, the U.S. Congress passed Public Law 103-150, otherwise known as the Apology Resolution,[4] signed by President Bill Clinton on November 23, 1993. The resolution apologized for the U.S. Government's role in supporting the 1893 overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii.

Shortly after we moved here, Hawaii celebrated it's 50th year of statehood.  For me, though, it was a reminder of how Hawaii became part of the United States.  I've had some enlightening conversations with Hawaiians and how they feel about being a part of the US.  And as we come upon another 4th of July (our second here since moving), it is easy to understand the lack luster celebration.

However, I find myself, once again, thankful to those who set out to create a different kind of nation.

Happy 4th of July!