insular-cases
A series of 1901 Supreme Court rulings that determined the Constitution applies fully only to incorporated U.S. territories, leaving unincorporated territories with limited rights and statutory citizenship.
2 chapters across 1 book
How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States (2019)Daniel Immerwahr
The chapter details the United States' transformation into an imperial power following the Spanish-American War, focusing on the acquisition of overseas territories such as the Philippines and the resulting challenges to traditional notions of governance, citizenship, and national identity. It explores the racial and political contradictions inherent in annexing nonwhite populations, the legal ambiguities established by the 1901 Insular Cases that denied full constitutional rights to inhabitants of unincorporated territories, and the enduring legacy of political disenfranchisement faced by millions in these colonial possessions.
This chapter's notes provide comprehensive scholarly references supporting the narrative of U.S. imperial expansion from the guano trade through the Spanish-American War and its aftermath. It details the economic and ecological importance of guano, the cultural construction of imperial masculinity through figures like Theodore Roosevelt, and the legal and racial complexities arising from new colonial possessions, particularly as shaped by the Insular Cases and debates over American identity and sovereignty.