All about Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico has been a territory of the United States since 1898 after the U.S. defeated Spain in the Spanish-American war. It was discovered in 1493 on Columbus’ second voyage to the new world. It was originally called “San Juan Bautista, for St. John the Baptist and the town was named Puerto Rico ("rich port") for its abundance of natural resources, especially gold and its excellent location.” It is not a U.S. state, however Puerto Ricans are born with American citizenship and can freely travel between the island and the mainland without a passport. This also means they do “not have voting power in Congress and its citizens can’t vote for the U.S. president — but they can vote in party primaries. Puerto Rico is self-governed through a local constitution that was approved by Congress in 1952. Residents can elect their own Governor, Assembly and Senate.”
Puerto Rico is a ‘melting pot’ of different cultures with the blend of “Taino Indians, Spanish, and African cultures.” Our loyalty for our culture has lasted throughout the centuries and will continue to last for a lifetime. We are known for our hospitality and outgoing way of life.
In the past decade, Puerto Rico’s economy has been on a continuous down spiral. Their economy is affected by the same factors as the United States’ economy. It started when 9/11 occurred, which severely affected Puerto Rico’s economy more than the mainland. Beginning in the year 2011, approximately 55,000 residents migrated from the island onto the mainland. This trend continued for years and it is the most the island has ever seen. “As of June 2015, Puerto Rico is on the brink of default. Puerto Rico's external debt is part of the U.S. debt, but the island has a public debt approaching US $16 billion. Puerto Rico carries more debt per capita than any state in the United States. To make matters worse, Puerto Rico's unemployment rate is above 15%, more than double the 7.3% in the mainland, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics.”
Present day, Puerto Rico has the highest unemployment rate in the United States.
In May 2017, “the federal board filed Puerto Rico's bankruptcy, the largest ever in the $3.8 trillion municipal-bond market.” As they continued trying to stabilize the economy, Hurricane Maria (the strongest hurricane to reach the island in over a century) hit four months later, devastating the island, destroying the electrical grid for months to come, and immediately stopping the economy. Over a year later and there are many people who are still using tarp as the roof over their heads and there are people who have not taken the boards out of their windows.
“The United States is one of the world’s richest, most powerful and technologically innovative countries; but neither its wealth nor its power nor its technology is being harnessed to address the situation in which 40 million people continue to live in poverty.”
Here are some facts according to Amnesty.org:
More than 44% of the population of Puerto Rico lives in poverty, compared to the national US average of approximately 12%.
On 28 August 2018, Puerto Rico’s Governor revised the official death count from 64 to 2,975. Prior to that various other studies had estimated the death count to be even higher.
After a Federal Court decision on 30 August 2018, Puerto Ricans temporarily housed in the USA lost FEMA’s housing support on 15 September.
Puerto Rico has also experienced numerous, deadly earthquakes in the past year adding to the devastation. The city of Ponce was the epicenter for most of these earthquakes as the earthquakes formed in the waters south of Puerto Rico. These earthquakes knocked out power to much of the island, seriously damaging homes and buildings.
A year after the hurricane hit, “Amnesty International corroborated satellite imagery showing that stockpiles of USD 22 million worth of potentially vitally needed drinking water were left on tarmac with no sign it was distributed for months on end to hard-hit populations.”
There were people begging for water, needing water to survive, yet this happened, as many of the resources were expired. These pallettes included water, food, batteries, generators, and health supplies. Tens of thousands of people were left to fend on their own, and still doing so.
In the summer of 2019 began the “Ricky Renuncia” fight as tensions rose after a government warehouse full of supplies that were not used had been found.
“The 2017 storm exposed the harsh truth that the American colony had been politically and economically destroyed by Washington and its own corrupt administrators way before the Category 5 hurricane struck.” A leaked 11-page Telegram group chat went public between the governor Rosselló and other political figures in the government, culminating in the full 889-page release days later by the Center for Investigative Journalism. The chats were sexist, homophobic, misogynist, violent, crude and cruel that talked about the citizens of Puerto Rico in the wake of the aftermath of María and threatened other PR political leaders. “In order for the healing to begin, the corruption must end. This further underscores the importance of the reforms and financial controls we put in place to ensure these resources reach those who need them most.”
Prominent figures such as Bad Bunny and Ricky Martin led some of the protests. After two weeks of protests, Ricardo Rosselló resigned as governor on August 2, 2019.
The coronavirus has sent Puerto Rico into another dire emergency state, leading a majority of the island into unemployment. PR has taken one of the hardest economic hits due to the pandemic. “On an island that already had the highest poverty rate in the United States, at least 300,000 Puerto Ricans have filed unemployment claims linked to the pandemic — out of a civilian labor force of 1.05 million — and many others are ineligible for aid because they are part of the island’s large informal economy.” Puerto Rico’s unemployment rate can climb as high as 77% without the proper aid being distributed to the people.
Ways to help:
The Hispanic Federation launched its Unidos program. After Hurricane Maria, the organization created the program specifically for disaster relief, its resources reaching 78 municipalities in Puerto Rico by distributing first responders across the island and providing food and water to disaster victims. In collaboration with the University of Puerto Rico, the Unidos program is also providing mental health services across the island with a focus on trauma therapy after natural disasters.
https://www.hispanicfederationunidos.org/donate-now-earthquake-emergency
The World Central Kitchen is already preparing meals for those affected by the quakes. The organization is run by Chef Jose Andres, who says he and other cooks and volunteers are already stationed at various southern municipalities ready to start cooking with solar power and generators on hand.
Residents of Puerto Rico are looked at as “second-hand” citizens. Having Puerto Rico become the 51st state would help create an influx of money flow through the economy. They also will be given a voice in the government.
The months-long recovery effort in Puerto Rico post-Hurricane Maria has reignited the debate around statehood for the U.S. territory. Jose Fuentes, former Attorney General for Puerto Rico, explains why it’s time to make Puerto Rico the 51st state. Check out this video by clicking on the photo!