There is a flurry of articles in the major news media along the lines of “What will Democrats do now they have taken the House?” and “What will the Democratic agenda be?” After I read as many as I could, one thing stood out: Not one of those think pieces, op-eds, or pieces of punditry in the MSM that I read mentioned Puerto Rico. They covered many really important issues, like health care, voting rights, the Russia investigations, infrastructure, Trump’s taxes, and climate change, but thousands of dead Puerto Ricans no longer seem to haunt the living—except in the hearts and minds of Puerto Ricans who will never forget and who continue to suffer.
This tweet said what some people I know are thinking.
Cynical—yes. True, perhaps … unless we all ensure that this is not allowed to happen.
Now that Democrats have taken control of the House of Representatives, we will have the opportunity to address and redress many of the ills that have befallen our citizens under the misrule of Donald Trump and his Republican sycophants and toadies. Democrats will now become the chairs of House committees and subcommittees and will have the power to investigate and subpoena.
I don’t mean to imply that only Puerto Ricans have raised the issue of Trump, Republican, and FEMA failures in Puerto Rico.
During the Trump-hyped, xenophobic “caravan invasion” hysteria, invented to feed blood to his base and garner votes, there were people pointing out the hypocrisy:
However, now that that has faded into last week’s news and new outrages dominate the headlines and news cycle, it is important that we don’t allow Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands to fall off of our agenda and “to-do” lists. As Democrats take over as chairs of key House committees, much of the media attention will be focused on Elijah Cummings, Jerrold Nadler, Adam Schiff, and Maxine Waters.
If we want to see Puerto Rico dealt with justly, we should look to the leadership of Nydia Velázquez, the U.S. representative who has been a tireless champion and point person for Puerto Rico.
I was confident that Rep. Nydia Velázquez would easily win re-election.
Incumbent Democrat Rep. Nydia Velázquez will return to the House for a fourteenth term representing New York's 7th Congressional District.
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With 100 percent of precincts reporting in, Velázquez took 93.4 percent of the vote compared to Lieberman's 5.5 percent and Kurzon's 1.1 percent, Board of Elections data shows. Velázquez has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1993 and was the first Puerto Rican woman to be elected to Congress.
For those of us from New York City who have been following her career since even before she first ran for office, she is a household name. Let me introduce her to those of you who don’t know much about her, or her history.
The Washington Post’s Politics section has a short blurb from a few years ago on “Why She Matters”:
With one of the most liberal voting records in the House, Velazquez, the former chairwoman of the House Small Business Committee and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in the 111th Congress, represents a shift in power in the 111th Congress in favor of the Democratic Party's more progressive wing.
The first Puerto Rican woman elected to Congress, Velazquez has long been considered an effective advocate for small business interests and a national leader in the Latino community. She is especially adept at linking the interests of small businesses to those of Hispanics with discussions of minority-owned small businesses and the broader economic benefits of immigration reform.
The blurb details her political career, but tells you little about just who she is, and why she matters to many of us who are her supporters. The bio on her official website notes her upbringing in the town of Yabucoa, Puerto Rico; her educational achievements (first in her family to receive a college diploma); and her path from instructor at CUNY’s Hunter College through the New York City Council to the House of Representatives. Velázquez has also been a long-term advocate for Puerto Rico, and especially for Vieques:
Velázquez has been an advocate for human and civil rights of the Puerto Rican people. In the late 1990s and the 2000s, she was a leader in the Vieques movement, which sought to stop the United States military from using the inhabited island as a bomb testing ground. In May 2000, Velázquez was one of nearly two hundred people arrested (including fellow congressman Luis Gutiérrez) for refusing to leave the natural habitat the US military wished to continue using as a bombing range.
I’ve written about the history and plight of Vieques here. Vieques is still without full power and relying on back-up generators, with sometimes fatal consequences for residents.
Velázquez has been fighting for funds to clean up the contamination.
(The tweet above reads “Nydia Velázquez calls for $40 million for cleanup on Vieques.”)
I will never forget her powerful questioning of Ben Carson in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, and her message to Trump.
After Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico, Rep. Velazquez laid into Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson during a congressional hearing. She was particularly critical of President Trump’s tweets suggesting the feds might not provide aid over the long term.
“Those tweets are unpresidential,” she told Carson. “The most basic responsibility of the president of the U.S.A., the president of the most powerful country in the world, is to show up and provide the assistance and relief that American citizens need. They don’t need this kind of insult.”
If you missed it the first time around, give it a listen:
Right after Irma and Maria hit the islands, hers was one of the first voices heard, and she and other Democrats have continued to be strong voices of support and advocacy:
Here is a link to Velázquez’s remarks on Puerto Rico one year post-Maria. Read an excerpt below:
“But, this is not just about coldhearted Tweets – or a war of words. This is about life and death – and how our government failed 3.5 million of our fellow citizens. The American people deserve to know what happened, and why it happened. I’ve introduced legislation to establish a “9/11 style” commission that would provide a full report on what happened after Maria. I’ve also introduced the “COUNT Act”, which would establish federal procedures for establishing death tolls after disasters. So, there needs to be accountability – and a recognition of how badly our nation failed our fellow citizens in Puerto Rico.
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“But, beyond exposing what went wrong, we also need to look to the future --- and take tangible steps to help the Island get back on its feet. One important step would be allocating funds to address Puerto Rico’s Medicaid shortfall. Even before Maria, the Commonwealth was facing a looming healthcare crisis. Now, that problem has been exacerbated. Congress needs to act and act quickly.
“Second, it is time to dispense with Puerto Rico’s debt. The Wall Street hedge funds and others who gambled that they could make billions by tearing the Island apart must be stopped once and for all. I’ve introduced legislation that would create a path for the Island to terminate their debt obligations.
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“[O]ne last component needs to be in building a sustainable, energy infrastructure. Puerto Rico gets sunshine 365 days a year. It has ample wind, that could power thousands of turbines. Yet, the bulk of the Island’s energy comes from diesel fuel. That make no sense and it needs to change – for two related reasons.
“First, as we saw from Maria, from Harvey, from Irma, and most recently Florence – as our planet warms, these types of storms are becoming more frequent and more intense. Puerto Rico’s energy future needs to help solve climate change --- not worsen it.
“Second, a smarter, more sustainable energy grid will be a more resilient energy grid. Imagine if when Maria struck, rather than transmission lines in rural areas taking ten months to repair – if instead local communities had stored up solar power – and had the lights back on in 24 or 72 hours. How much suffering would that have prevented? How many lives might have been saved? So sustainable energy needs to be part of the conversation.”
It is important that we know about what legislation for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands has been proposed so that we can contact our Democratic representatives to remind them to fight for it. This was a proposal that struck me immediately: When the power is out, how the heck can you expect people to get food benefits if they have cards that depend upon using a machine powered by electricity?
Velázquez Bill Would Ensure Federal Food Benefits in Puerto Rico in Event of Power Outages
Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) has authored legislation to make federal food benefits in Puerto Rico available as cash immediately in the event of another major natural disaster. Following Hurricanes Irma and Maria, all of Puerto Rico lost access to electricity and telecommunications, resulting in widespread challenges for those looking to access Nutritional Assistance Program (NAP) benefits, which are currently distributed electronically.
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“This legislation would ensure that, in the event of another power outage, those who rely on federal nutrition programs could still access benefits and the help they need.”
Seems pretty obvious to me.
I am reposting some of the tweets relating to calls for legislation that I’ve previously posted to Abbreviated Pundit Roundup (APR) here at Daily Kos, where every morning I post a Puerto Rico Twitter roundup in the comments section.
Readers should follow Rep. Velázquez on Twitter, read up on proposed legislation on her website, and then make sure that your congressional representatives do not allow Puerto Rico to be shoved under the rug while other issues take priority.
I agree with this poster from Puerto Rico. Angela posts the reality of what is going on, and that most reporters have failed to convey:
We do need to hold folks we have just elected to the promises they have made.
Nydia Velázquez needs us to help her do just that.