High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The legal status of Hawaii -- as opposed to its political status—is a subject of increasing scholarly and legal debate. While Hawaii is broadly accepted as a state of the United States of America in mainstream understanding, there is a growing body of critique regarding this assumption. The viewpoint that Hawaii is in fact legally an independent nation under U.S. occupation is spreading rapidly in academic circles, school curriculum, the U.N. and other international forums, and daily dialogue in Hawaii. The legality of control of Hawaii by the United States has also been brought up in cases in the U.S. Supreme Court, in U.S. District Court, and in international legal actions. Outside of Hawaii, however, this legal debate is still relatively unknown.