War & Paradise: The Territories Of The U.S.

American Samoa

American Samoa is renowned for their world-class athletes in sports, mainly football and rugby. Hundreds of Samoans have played for the world-class New Zealand All Blacks national team, which has been consistently ranked No. 1 in the world for almost 8 years straight. With a large emphasis unto masculinity and strength, it should come as no surprise that American Samoa is quite patriarchal. However, many underestimate the extent to which it affects their politics. While anyone can run to represent Samoa in Congress, few do so without the help of the village chiefs, known as ‘matais’. These men virtually control the local government from top to bottom, leading to accusations of female vote suppression and corruption.