The Insular Cases
Stuff You Missed in History Class
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The Insular Cases and the Implications for Territories
This chapter discusses the 1901 Insular Cases which established that Puerto Rico, Hawaii, the Philippines, Samoa, and Guam were part of the United States in some ways, but not others. It explores the limitations on constitutional rights for people living in these territories and highlights the issue of legal racism. The chapter also mentions specific cases that illustrate the complexities of citizenship and rights in these territories.
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The Insular Cases are SCOTUS cases regarding rights of people in U.S. territories. They’re considered U.S. citizens from birth, but they don’t have the same constitutional rights or representation as citizens who live in one of the 50 states.
Research:
- Armstrong v. United States, 182 U.S. 243 (1901). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/182/243/
- Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Sanford Ballard Dole". Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Jun. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sanford-Ballard-Dole. Accessed 31 July 2023.
- Carstensen, Vernon. “The Constitutional and Territorial Expansion.” https://naldc.nal.usda.gov/download/IND88053401/pdf
- DeLima v. Bidwell, 182 U.S. 1 (1901). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/182/1/
- Dooley v. United States, 182 U.S. 222 (1901). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/182/222/
- Dooley v. United States, 183 U.S. 151 (1901). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/183/151/
- Downes v. Bidwell, 182 U.S. 244 (1901). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/182/244/
- Erman, Sam. “Meanings of Citizenship in the U.S. Empire: Puerto Rico, Isabel Gonzalez, and the Supreme Court, 1898 to 1905.” Journal of American Ethnic History Summer 2008 Volume 27, Number 4.
- Fiol-Matta, Lía. “Future of the Insular Cases.” Latino Justice. https://www.latinojustice.org/en/latinojusticeopina/future-insular-cases
- Fourteen Diamond Rings v. United States, 183 U.S. 176 (1901). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/183/176/
- Gelpí, Gustavo A. “The Insular Cases: A Comparative Historical Study of Puerto Rico, Hawai‘i, and the Philippines.” The Federal Lawyer | March/April 2011.
- Gershon, Livia. “The Myth of Manifest Destiny.” JSTOR Daily. 5/5/2021. https://daily.jstor.org/the-myth-of-manifest-destiny/
- Goetze v. United States, 182 U.S. 221 (1901). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/182/221/
- Howe, Amy. “Court declines to take up petition seeking to overturn Insular Cases.” SCOTUS Blog. 10/17/2022. https://www.scotusblog.com/2022/10/court-declines-to-take-up-petition-seeking-to-overturn-insular-cases/
- Huus v. New York & Porto Rico Steamship Co., 182 U.S. 392 (1901). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/182/392/
- National Archives. “Louisiana Purchase Treaty (1803).” https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/louisiana-purchase-treaty#no-1
- Perez, Lisa Maria. “Citizenship Denied: The ‘Insular Cases’ and the Fourteenth Amendment.” Virginia Law Review , Jun., 2008, Vol. 94, No. 4 (Jun., 2008). https://www.jstor.org/stable/25470577
- Ponsa-Kraus, Christina. “The Insular Cases Run Amok: Against Constitutional Exceptionalism in the Territories.” Yale Law Journal. Vol. 131, No. 8. June 2022. https://www.yalelawjournal.org/article/the-insular-cases-run-amok
- Sparrow, Bartholomew H. "Insular Cases." Encyclopedia of the Supreme Court of the United States, edited by David S. Tanenhaus, vol. 2, Macmillan Reference USA, 2008, pp. 476-481. Gale In Context: U.S. History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3241200487/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=91c70605. Accessed 25 July 2023.
- Supreme Court of the United States. “UNITED STATES v. VAELLO MADERO.” Argued November 9, 2021—Decided April 21, 2022. https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/20-303_6khn.pdf
- Topol, Sarah A., and Glenna Gordon. "The America That Americans Forget." The New York Times Magazine, 9 July 2023, p. 22(L). Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A756508304/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=9e9434c8. Accessed 25 July 2023.
- Torruella, Juan R. “Ruling America's Colonies: The Insular Cases” Yale Law & Policy Review. 32:57. 2013.
- Torruella, Juan R. “The Insular Cases: The Establishment of a Regime of Political Apartheid.” University of Pennsylvania Journal of International Law. Winter 2007. https://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/jil/vol29/iss2/1/
- S. Department of the Interior Office of Insular Affairs. “Definitions of Insular Area Political Organizations.” https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/politicatypes
- S. State Department Office of the Historian. “Louisiana Purchase, 1803 .” https://history.state.gov/milestones/1801-1829/louisiana-purchase.
- Wallach, Sherry Levin. “The Insular Cases Must Be Overturned.” Bloomberg Law. 8/3/2022. https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/the-insular-cases-must-be-overturned
- Yale Law School. “Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo; February 2, 1848.” https://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/guadhida.asp
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