ALEXANDRA |
Alexandra is a Puerto Rican 24 year old woman who recently graduated from law school and has lived in Puerto Rico for about 9 years now. For her, being Puerto Rican has a strong blood-born element but also the understanding of the culture and history while having the disposition to explore it, work for it, and want to improve it. Puerto Rico is her home, its where she grew up and where she became who she is today. For Alexandra Puerto Rico is the underdog with the potential to be something more than just a mistake.
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When asked about the relationship between PR and the US, Alexandra responded with “we are a colony”. The US Federal Government has complete power over PR, only some designated institutions have very strict limitations to controlling power. Interestingly, she identified that the title of commonwealth is not functioning in practice as PR is a problem for the US besides the private corporations making money off of the middle class. The commonwealth or “Estado Libre Asociado” was the name given to the political status of PR or relationship with the US that sounds like a associated state but it’s not. Other states use the term commonwealth such as Delaware but that doesn’t make it a colony which confuses Alexandra when defining what a commonwealth is. She agrees that Puerto Rico is an example of American Imperialism and still is to this day. She believes that the US primarily wanted PR for its strategic military location and vicinity to other international interests nearby.
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Puerto Rico is the underdog, there's still hope |
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Alexandra, as an observer from a citizen point of view, pointed out how there has been a systemic corruption for decades that has been accepted and is expected every four years. She thinks that there was always corruption even in the past there was just money being made, but now the scarcity of money is making the corruption more transparent and prevalent. Also the fact that the island maintains a focus on attracting American businesses instead of developing locals facilitates the money being taken elsewhere that isn’t helping the economic circulation within the island. Puerto Rico has had previously a special relationship with the US with tax breaks and trade treaties but has been stripped from these privileges leaving PR trying to recuperate the lack of money, jobs, and employment. She identifies that one of the grave mistakes made was the borrowing of money and selling of bonds when the government did not have the money to back up their economic game of stability. With the partisan government is organized but divided due to the political status each party stands by, which unfortunately eliminates collaboration and continuity in order to achieve progress in the beautiful mess PR has become to be.
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Personally, she has not noticed a strong economic change, but she does admit that she never was in Puerto Rico in its “glory days” only in crisis. “You hear people are doing very poorly, people without jobs, you see the homeless and abandoned houses, and that people are leaving” Alexandra sees to that if the professionals leave for opportunity the Puerto Rico left behind is then worse than it was before. She knows that Puerto Rico has been in recession since 2002 and that it got worse in 2007 with nothing taking place to improve the current state of PR. The US has committed mistakes and atrocities to PR such as using women without consent for contraceptives, the regulation of rights, and the recycled use of the welfare plan that is incompatible to PR economic time of inferiority. PR has just been lobed into submission leaving the residents of the island in “mantengo” (upkeep). The only benefit she can comprehend is seeing the US as the country of opportunity and that being an “associated free state” gives the citizens the American passport. Alexandra affirms that the US has abused its power on how its treated PR and that the lack of representation and consideration to the population is just unjust and unfair to the people.
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I've only seen Puerto Rico in crisis estado de mantengo continuo |
A change is all we need |
A colony for her is an organization of government that is not sovereign or represented thus having no choice or say on whatever is imposed upon it. Puerto Rico can locally make a decision but the citizens cannot vote for president and there is no representation in congress. When asking Alexandra about other possibilities or alternatives that PR has she mentioned both statehood and independence. Although there is a great fear that the culture will be lost if converted to a state, it may be the price that must be paid in order to obtain the rights, representation, and voice PR deserved years ago. Alexandra also admits that independence is another viable option even though Puerto Rico is not ready yet. “A change is all we need”
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