Puerto Rico has been trending on social media, as more and more people here on the mainland, most who are not Puerto Rican, have been responding to the vote in the House for DC statehood. Pro-statehood remarks often lump the District in with Puerto Rico, as if their histories and politics are the same, demanding “if DC is to become a state—why not Puerto Rico?”
The other (mistaken) assumption I’ve heard repeated over and over, is that if Puerto Rico were to become a state that would add two Democratic senators, as well as a number of new Democratic members to the house. To make matters even more complicated, the current appointed governor of Puerto Rico, Wanda Vázquez Garced, who is running for election in November and is a Trump supporter and statehood advocate, has scheduled yet another non-binding vote on status for Nov. 3, which has been described as “a farce.”
Meanwhile, as the status issue gets tossed around, there are still grave conditions on the island that need addressing, including the continued withholding of authorized funds by the Trump administration, the failing power grid, COVID-19, people still living under tarps since Hurricane Maria, and preparedness for the worst part of the hurricane season.
For almost two years, I’ve been getting up early each morning, to gather media coverage of conditions on the island and for Puerto Ricans here on the mainland. Statehood status chatter has dominated my Twitter stream for the last several days, and I’d like you to consider some of the responses from progressives and activists on the island, and their supporters here.
I’m posting part of this Twitter thread from Ricardo A. Ramírez, using Threadreader to make it easier to read—please read the whole thing.
U.S. progressive friends, that tweet you’re sending on Puerto Rico is well intentioned. But you're hurting progressives on the island. A thread 🧵
There’s an entire ecosystem of Puerto Rican grassroots organizations, academics, workers, writers, artists, etc. who have grappled with equity, social justice, undoing racism, and the island’s relationship with the U.S. for a long time.
You stepping into this moment demanding “now do Puerto Rico” statehood is not helpful. It reinforces an imperial mindset -- deciding for us -- and it erases the work, struggle and thought leadership of an entire people.
An estimated 46 percent of Puerto Ricans support statehood, as is their right. But most others do not. Moreover, the power structures in PR pushing statehood are analogous to the right wing in the U.S.
A quick dive into some terrible acts by the statehooders in power/the Puerto Rican right wing this week:
Just last week, a scandal broke out when a right-wing radio personality said the N word on air. Journalists like @julito77 were on this.
The statehood party (PNP), which holds both chambers of the legislature, passed a resolution defending him as someone who stands up for “truth.”
After defending this broadcaster who used the N word, and insisting that the N word remain on the Senate record, statehooders then equated their support for the broadcaster as equivalent to ACTING LIKE ROSA PARKS. No joke.
This is just one snapshot of one event this week; we won’t cover the richness of Puerto Rican struggle and resistance over Twitter.
But it’s important to know that the statehood movement tends to be conservative when it comes to LGBTQ rights, women’s equality, the rights of immigrants, energy, and education. Their leaders certainly are.
I don't fault any Puerto Rican for supporting statehood. I get it. Point is, 1) *they* should get to decide and 2) Their party and movement are unacceptably conservative; they put women, the LGBTQ community, POC in danger.
If you're a progressive in the U.S., before throwing your support to statehood for Puerto Rico, you need to think about the dynamics and values behind the statehood power structure, and the fact that your support helps them push right-wing ideologies.
Blindly supporting statehood positions you in opposition to local resistance. You should also think carefully before deciding on political status on behalf of Puerto Ricans. (Don’t do it.)
Other posts:
She expresses her perspective on U.S. colonialism.
In 2020, America still holds an additional four colonies — the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Guam — all which have suffered a similar fate to Puerto Rico: economic turmoil, governmental mismanagement, and of course, a lack of voting rights. Most people in the U.S. don’t even know residents of three of these places are citizens, or that American Samoans have not been even afforded that “privilege.” And, in the grand American tradition of marginalizing communities of color, from Indigenous peoples to the descendants of slavery, most Americans don’t really care about their fate, either.
As a child of the colonial experiment, I don’t consider myself American; just a Puerto Rican who happens to have U.S. citizenship. How could I feel otherwise? My entire life has been defined by witnessing the mistreatment of my home. Sometimes the reminders are insidious: As a child I was taught English, U.S. History, and the Star-Spangled Banner; in the liberal city of New York, people ask about my “visa situation” or whether they’d need a passport to visit the island, completely oblivious to the 122 years of baggage between the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Sometimes the reminders are much more explicit: bombs falling in Vieques and Culebra, the evolution from “savage and restless people” to “lazy and ungrateful,” and the blatantly racist policies specifically targeting Puerto Ricans, such as in the issuance of mainland drivers licenses. Entire generations have grown up hearing that without the U.S. kindly taking it under its wing, Puerto Rico would be doomed — poor, witnessing a mass exodus, in perpetual suffering. But that’s exactly what has happened under half a millennia of colonial rule under the Spanish and the Americans. Today, around 5.5 million boricuas live on the mainland — over two million more than on the islands.
Broke or woke?
Few people hopping on the statehood bandwagon here on the mainland can answer this harsh challenge.
The U.S. left, which has fought long and hard against colonialism around the world, seems to miss the fact that many Puerto Ricans see their status as a colony.
Andrew Padilla, who tweets from New York City, had this to say:
In my daily tweet on the number of days that have passed since Maria, I asked this question.
I have pointed out frequently, that I am not Puerto Rican, and that I don’t live on the island. In the past, as a member of a large organization which supported independence, that was the position I followed. I do not take a position these days, since I deeply believe that is the choice that should be made by Puerto Ricans who live there—and when they do, it becomes a matter for Congress.
Meanwhile, conditions aren’t improving in PR, and instead of focusing on status, it would be far more useful if we pressure the Senate to back release of funds for PR, and get rid of those elected officials including Trump who are slowly killing people on the island.
Don’t let the debate on status deflect from the conditions that need addressing right now.