Hawaii Plans Quiet 50th Anniversary of Statehood; Some Want Independence for Island Chain

Monday, August 17, 2009
By Mark Niesse, Associated Press

Honolulu (AP) - Hawaii turns 50 years old as the 50th state Friday, but there will be no grand parades, no dazzling fireworks, no lavish displays of native culture.

Organizers of the observation are not even willing to call it a party. It is simply a "commemoration," one that is sensitive to a painful history of the Hawaiian monarchy's overthrow and unresolved claims of Native Hawaiians.

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