What Does “Consent of the Governed” Mean in U.S. Territories?

Please join Right to Democracy in coordination with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Congresswoman Kimberlyn King-Hinds (R-NMI), and Special Guest Daniel Immerwahr, NYT Bestselling Author of How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States to learn how 1776 informs the federal-territorial relationship today.

In 1776 – 250 years ago – the United States declared its independence and rejected the idea of colonial rule. It established “the consent of the governed” and “all created equal” as its foundational values. Yet, for the last 125 years, as a result of the Supreme Court’s decisions in the Insular Cases, the United States has denied democracy, equity, and self-determination to people in overseas U.S. territories. This impacts not just the 3.6 million people who live in these island communities, but also a territorial diaspora of over 6 million. What does “consent of the governed” mean today for people in Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands?

Join us for a congressional briefing that will explore the current relationship between U.S. territories and the United States through the lens of the Declaration of Independence. Hear from community leaders in each Territory about how their day-to-day lives are impacted by decisions made by the federal government without their say, much less consent. Understand how discriminatory federal programs increase the cost-of-living, forcing many to leave their communities altogether. And what lessons can people in U.S. territories, who live on the front lines of threats to the environment, democracy, and national security, teach everyone in the United States?

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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