Здесь пишут:According to the 2000 Census, 6.6% of Hawaii's population identified themselves as Native Hawaiian, 24.3% were White or Caucasian, including Portuguese and 41.6% were Asian, including 0.1% Asian Indian, 4.7% Chinese, 14.1% Filipino, 16.7% Japanese, Okinawan, 1.9% Korean and 0.6% Vietnamese. 1.3% were other Pacific Islander which includes Tongan, Tahitian, Maori and Micronesian, and 21.4% described themselves as mixed (two or more races/ethnic groups). 1.8% were Black or African American and 0.3% were American Indian and Alaska Native.

В Пуэрто Рико конечно такого разнообразия нет, но все равно, думаю каких-то 50 лет назад Гавайи тоже не особо считали себя частью Америки.

В принципе и этнического разногласия для этого не требуется. Американцы в свое время перестали считать себя англичанами, а южане так же пытались свою страну создать.