Yes, I think States as an entity have worth beyond the population (number) they contain. States embody a collective decision to form a cohesive institution of self governship. Your view appears to be that that decision should be diminished without the consent of those who made it. It is paramount to how the U.S. has successively cheated and stolen land and power from Native Americans. The right to locally self govern is important, maybe the most important aspect of this American experiment.