The Mau movement (Samoan: O le Mau), also called the Samoan CauseShaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 148. . or the Samoan LeagueChapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Page 251. ISSN 0030-8684., was an anti-colonial independence movement in American Samoa, established in late 1919 or early 1920 to challenge the U.S. Navy's authority.Droessler, Holger (2022). Coconut Colonialism: Workers and the Globalization of Samoa. Harvard University Press. Page 200. .

The movement was launched by Mauga Moi Moi, the highest ranking chief in Pago Pago, after it was discovered that U.S officials had misappropriated public funds. A boycott of copra, a critical revenue source of the U.S. Navy, was initiated.Droessler, Holger (2022). Coconut Colonialism: Workers and the Globalization of Samoa. Harvard University Press. Page 199. .Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa - History Of American Samoa And Its United States Naval Administration  (1st ed.). Page 140. United States Naval Institute. .

The movement was declared over in 1935, after the death of Mauga Moi Moi.Chappell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920-1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): p. 255. ISSN 0030-8684.

Origins

Opposition to U.S. rule in Samoa predated 1920. After the eastern islands came under U.S. authority, Samoans faced mistreatment towards chiefs and women and were paid less than U.S. naval personnel.Lal, Brij V. and Kate Fortune (2000). The Pacific Islands: An Encyclopedia. University of Hawaiʻi Press. Page 101. .

In 1902, Tutuilans objected to a copra tax. Governor Uriel Sebree responded by imprisoning three local leaders and removing a Samoan judge who had complained to the U.S. Navy, and described Samoans as "grown-up children who love form and ceremony."Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Pages 228-229. ISSN 0030-8684.

By 1904, chiefs from the Western and Eastern Districts held assemblies calling for the tax to be reduced and for an accounting of its use, and travelled together between Pago Pago and Leone to protest.

Governor Warren Terhune, in office from June 1919 to November 1920, faced widespread disapproval, and his administration and policies significantly contributed to the emergence of the Mau movement.Chappell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920-1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2). ISSN 0030-8684. A.M. Noble, an official in the Terhune administration, oversaw racially discriminatory policies in American Samoa during the 1920s. Samoans referred to him and two others in the administration as the "three white mice."Kennedy, Joseph (2009). The Tropical Frontier: America’s South Sea Colony. University of Guam Press. ISBN 9780980033151.

Key figures

Some key figures of the Mau movement in American Samoa were:Campbell, I. C. “Resistance and Colonial Government: A Comparative Study of Samoa.” The Journal of Pacific History 40, no. 1 (2005): p. 45–69. .

Samuel Sailele Ripley, leader of the movement. Deported, barred and exiled from American Samoa due to his involvement in the Mau movement. He later became the mayor of Richmond, California. Mauga Moi Moi, Pago Pago’s highest-ranking chief. Spurred by Mauga Moi Moi, the Mau movement came into being under his leadership. After his passing in 1935, Governor Otto Dowling claimed this was the end of the Mau movement.Chappell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920-1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): p. 255. ISSN 0030-8684.Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa - History Of American Samoa And Its United States Naval Administration (1st ed.). Page 140. United States Naval Institute. . Magalei Siāsulu of Faleniu, one of the Mau movement’s leaders.Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes - A record of the history makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900-2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. Page 81. . Chris Taliutafa Young, descendent of Tui Manu'a Matelita and one of the Mau movement’s leaders.Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes - A record of the history makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900-2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. Page 186. .Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. Page 209. . Ned Ripley, brother of Samuel Sailele Ripley, organized Mau meetings.Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. Page 202. . Nelesoni Tuitele of Leone, testified in favor of the Mau movement and sided with Samuel Sailele Ripley and Arthur A. Greene. Nelsoni read Greene’s anti-administration articles into the record of the Bingham Commission’s hearings.Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes - A record of the history makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900-2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. Page 172. . Chief Soliai of Nuʻuuli. Chief Galea'i of Fitiua.Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa - History Of American Samoa And Its United States Naval Administration (1st ed.). Page 228. United States Naval Institute. . Creed H. Boucher, Lieutenant Commander, executive officer of Governor Warren Terhune. Supported the movement and was arrested and deported.Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2). ISSN 0030-8684. Arthur C. Kail, replaced Creed H. Boucher and was supportive of the Mau movement. Found guilty of abetting Creed H. Boucher in activities, which “bordered on sedition”.Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2). ISSN 0030-8684. Madge A. Ripley, wife of Samuel Sailele Ripley. Wrote letters to First Lady Florence Harding and addressed women's clubs and organizations in California, encouraging their members to protest the U.S. Naval Administration's actions in Samoa.Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa - History Of American Samoa And Its United States Naval Administration (1st ed.). Page 203. United States Naval Institute. . Lemafa, Chief of Aunuʻu Island Grace Pepe Malemo Haleck, nurse.Droessler, Holger (2022). Coconut Colonialism: Workers and the Globalization of Samoa. Harvard University Press. Page 200. . Arthur A. Greene, editor for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Claimed the Mau movement invited him to be their legal counsel, but the U.S. Navy accused him of misinforming and misleading Samoans into unrest.Chappell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920-1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): p. 236. ISSN 0030-8684. After his deportation in November 1920, he wrote to Senator Reed Smoot and President Calvin Coolidge.Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. Page 199. . High Chief Sātele Itulā of the Western District was removed from his role as district governor by Governor Warren Terhune. But he continued to arrange anti-U.S. Navy meetings in Nuʻuuli.Chappell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920-1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): p. 238. ISSN 0030-8684.

Aims

The aims of the Mau movement included:Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2). ISSN 0030-8684.

Exposing financial exploitation.Chappell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920-1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): p. 233. ISSN 0030-8684. Restoring legislative authority to Samoan chiefs.Chappell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920-1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): p. 233. ISSN 0030-8684. Abolishing labor without compensation.Droessler, Holger (2022). Coconut Colonialism: Workers and the Globalization of Samoa. Harvard University Press. Pages 200-201. . Ending U.S. Navy rule and establishing a civilian government.Field, Michael (1991). Mau: Samoa’s Struggle for Freedom. Polynesian Press. Page 105. .Sunia, Fofo I.F. (2009). A History of American Samoa. Amerika Samoa Humanities Council. Page 204. . Promoting cooperative governance between Samoans and Americans.Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Pages 242-245. ISSN 0030-8684. Securing the release of imprisoned chiefs (the “Faleniu conspirators”).Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Page 245. ISSN 0030-8684. Repealing contentious laws, including those banning interracial marriages and malagas (organized inter-village visits).Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Pages 242-245. ISSN 0030-8684. Challenging the U.S. Navy's copra monopoly.Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Pages 239-240. ISSN 0030-8684. Organizing a copra boycott, effectively disabling the revenue-dependent U.S. naval administration.Droessler, Holger (2022). Coconut Colonialism: Workers and the Globalization of Samoa. Harvard University Press. Page 199. . Opposing the revocation of chiefly titles.Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Page 244. ISSN 0030-8684. Questioning the legitimacy of U.S. Navy authority in Samoa.Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Pages 239-240. ISSN 0030-8684. Ending perceived American exploitation of Samoans.Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Pages 239-240. ISSN 0030-8684. Resisting the deportation and exile of Mau leader Samuel Sailele Ripley.Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. Page 202. . Safeguarding Faʻa Sāmoa — including chiefly (matai) titles and ceremonial protocols — from external interference. Advocating for equal rights for both Samoans and Americans.Chappell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920-1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): p. 236. ISSN 0030-8684. Seeking unification of the Samoan Islands.Chapell, David A. (2000). "The Forgotten Mau: Anti-Navy Protest in American Samoa, 1920–1935". Pacific Historical Review. 69 (2): Page 251. ISSN 0030-8684. Engaging in civil disobedience. In 1927, the Mau movement intensified its efforts by sending Governor Stephen Victor Graham a letter announcing that its members would no longer pay taxes until a civilian government—an outcome they strongly supported—was put in place.Field, Michael (1991). Mau: Samoa’s Struggle for Freedom. Polynesian Press. Page 105. .Sunia, Fofo I.F. (2009). A History of American Samoa. Amerika Samoa Humanities Council. Page 204. . A number of matais were arrested for tax evasion.Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes - A record of the history makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900-2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. Page 81. .

U.S. response