When did Hawaii become a State?

Did you know that the capital of Hawaii is Honolulu on the Oahu Island? It is not the biggest island yet has the largest population.  Also, you should know that Big Island of Hawaii is the biggest Hawaiian island with second biggest being Maui. That’s not all! Third, biggest is Oahu. And the other islands which are visited by tourists are Kauai, Lanai, and Molokai. While those are facts that you must know about Hawaii, one of the tourist's favorite destination to explore, do you know when the little island acquired statehood and officially became to be identified as a state and not a territory?

In the year 1959, For a territory to become a state, it has to be accepted by the majority of two-thirds of both the houses and the Senate of the U.S Congress, and then the president needs to sign to make the action live!

Innumerable eminent politicians wanted Hawaii to become a state since as early as 1900’s, but multiple of uncontrollable factors prevented it from taking place. In the initial days, big sugar and pineapple plantation owners in Hawaii around that time were in acceptance of fewer restrictions on immigration approach in association with the U.S territories as opposed to those associated with states. So, the plantation owners were influential in retaining Hawaii as a territory for decades as they relied on immigration for the supply of sturdy foreign laborers.

Other elements made it way too difficult for Hawaii into becoming a state. Do you know that Southern states were in opposition to Hawaii becoming a state? According to them if it had turned into one it would have been the first state in the nation that did not own whites as the majority and thought it would further lead to racial desegregation and the civil rights movement in America. Many of them raised the question of the honesty of Hawaii’s residents as a chief part of its population was of Asian ancestry which was the uppermost concern during the initial days of World War 2. Also, innumerable locals residing in Hawaii protested against statehood with reason that Hawaii should not have been a part of the United States to start with saying it was illegally conquered in the late nineteenth century.

(Image Courtesy: Men's Health)

One of the pivotal movers for turning Hawaii into a state was John A. Burns who got the opportunity to become Hawaii’s territorial delegate to Congress in 1956 He also became the governor of Hawaii later.  Also, he lobbied Speakers of the House Sam Rayburn, Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B.  Johnson, to push Alaska and Hawaii in the statehood category in the US Congress with the help of act called Hawaii’s statehood bill. Do you also know that Hawaii was turned into a state post local plebiscite vote where ninety-six percent voters gave a positive response to the accepted law in Hawaii and also post official order thrown by the president in the year 1959 who was Eisenhower?

Not just that, Did you know Alaska was turned into the 49th state on January 3, 1959, just seven months before Hawaii became the fiftieth state?

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(Featured Image Courtesy: News Of Hawaii)