Kūʻē Petitions Against Annexation
Beginning September 11, 1897, the Hui Aloha ʻĀina organized a mass petition drive against U.S. annexation of Hawaiʻi. Over three weeks, 21,269 Native Hawaiians — more than half the Kanaka population — signed the Kūʻē (opposition) petitions. A delegation carried them to Washington, helping defeat the annexation treaty in the U.S. Senate.