Fofó Iosefa Fiti Sunia (born March 13, 1937) was the first non-voting

Delegate Delegate or delegates may refer to: * Delegate, New South Wales, a town in Australia * Delegate (CLI), a computer programming technique * Delegate (American politics), a representative in any of various political organizations * Delegate (United ...

from

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

. He was born in Fagasā,

Pago Pago Pago Pago ( ; Samoan: )Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). ''Geology of National Parks''. Kendall Hunt. Page 604. . is the territorial capital of American Samoa. It is in Maoputasi County on Tutuila, which is American Samoa's main island. ...

, and attended the University of Hawaii. Sunia was the administrative officer for the Samoan affairs-liaison functions for the

Governor of American Samoa This is a list of governors, etc. of the part of the Samoan Islands (now comprising American Samoa) under United States administration since 1900. From 1900 to 1978 governors were appointed by the Federal government of the United States. Since ...

, and served as a translator and interpreter and an election commissioner from 1961 to 1966. He founded the ''Samoan News'' newspaper in 1964 and became director of

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for the Government of American Samoa in 1966, serving until 1970. Sunia was elected a territorial Senator in 1970 and was a member of the legislature until 1978. He also formerly served as president and chairman of the American Samoan Development Corporation. Sunia was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the

, and served from January 3, 1981 until his resignation on September 6, 1988, after he was indicted on federal charges of running a payroll padding scheme. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five to fifteen months in prison and to pay $65,000 in restitution. He is currently a resident of

Political views

As a Delegate to the U.S. Congress, Sunia opposed a Constitutional amendment which would have made English the official language of the United States. He argued that English already is the language of the U.S. and the law represented few if any changes to the status quo. He was quoted for saying: “… the 35,000 American Samoans on the island use the

Samoan language Samoan ( or ; ) is a Polynesian language spoken by Samoans of the Samoan Islands. Administratively, the islands are split between the sovereign country of Samoa and the United States territory of American Samoa. It is an official language, alon ...

in government, in the court, in business and in all facets of daily living, but strive to improve their proficiency in English.” He did not believe the proposed amendment would reward “linguistic differences as an asset.”Shumway, Norman D. and Fofo I.F. Sunia (1985). "Should English Be the Official U.S. Language? (Pro and Con)." ''The American Legion'' 118, p. 13.

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Sunia, Fofo Iosefa Fiti 1937 births 20th-century American politicians American politicians convicted of fraud American Samoa Democrats American Samoa Senators American translators Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from American Samoa Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from American Samoa Living people Politicians convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States University of Hawaiʻi alumni

Political views

See also

References

External links