Reasons for the Recent Growth of the Puerto Rican Independence Movement
A Presentation Given on February 17, 2023 in Hartford, CT, at an Event Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Gloria Gerena
Good evening. I am Iván Ramos Soler, president of the Connecticut Committee of the Puerto Rican Independence Party in the Diaspora.
Many of us had the privilege of knowing Doña Gloria and I know that one way that we can honor her is by continuing to fight for the independence of Puerto Rico. I ask all of you to consider volunteering to help in causes and organizations that promote the independence of Puerto Rico.
I humbly suggest that the Puerto Rican Independence Party is one of those organizations. “El PIP” (as we commonly know the Independence Party in Puerto Rico), was founded more than 75 years ago and is the largest pro-independence organization. Although El PIP has had a chapter in New York City for about 65 years, this is the first time that an effort has been made to open up chapters in cities throughout the Puerto Rican diaspora.
The reason why this effort is taking place in the Puerto Rican diaspora, at this particular moment, is that there has been a recent resurgence in support for Puerto Rican independence. As you know, people in Puerto Rico have been living through some very difficult times during this past decade. As a result of this crisis, they have begun to question their Nation’s colonial relationship with the United States and are finally beginning to realize that the two traditional status options of Commonwealth and Statehood are no longer viable alternatives for resolving the status question. In light of this awareness, more and more Puerto Ricans are now looking to independence as the only road to a achieving a truly democratic and prosperous society.
In my opinion, there are four, relatively recent developments that are causing more and more of our brothers and sisters to look favorably at the option of independence. In order to better understand the current situation in Puerto Rico and to learn why the independence movement is growing, I will very briefly name and explain these four factors.
Number 1- Statehood is Dead. The U.S. Congress has continuously ignored the pleas for statehood from the New Progressive Party (PNP), the political party that supports this option. Despite winning five out of the last eight elections, and, presumably winning a locally held referendum, the PNP has failed miserably to obtain any significant support in Congress. As a matter of fact, it is fair to say that there has never been so much opposition to statehood in Congress as there is today.
Number 2- Recent U.S. Supreme Court Decisions Have Exposed the Fallacy of the Commonwealth Status. Recent decisions in cases such as Sanchez Valle and Maello Madero have debunked, once and for all, the false notion that the Commonwealth status is similar to a treaty or a compact between two sovereign nations. In fact, since 2016, the Supreme Court has reiterated the colonial nature of the Commonwealth status, affirming that Puerto Rico is a possession or territory of the U.S. that is governed by Congress’s “plenary powers”.
Number 3- The Fiscal Control Board is a Colonial Dictatorship. Puerto Ricans have realized that they do not live in a democracy. Since 2016, Puerto Rico has been governed by a supra governmental body known as The Fiscal Control Board ( or “La Junta”). This non-elected Board is appointed by the government of the United States and has the power to invalidate laws enacted by the elected government of Puerto Rico. Although, presumably, the Board exists to rule over financial matters, it also uses its powers to invalidate laws in a wide range of matters including the environment, labor relations, medical insurance and, Puerto Rico’s power grid. And, yes, as you might suspect, LUMA, the disastrous electric company that runs the power grid in Puerto Rico, was imposed by La Junta.
Number 4- The Two Party System has Collapsed. For decades, political power in Puerto Rico has been strictly shared by two political parties, The pro-statehood PNP and the pro-Commonwealth PPD. Now, these two parties are rapidly fading. Rampant corruption in these two organizations, the economic crisis and, the three factors that I have just mentioned, have lead to the collapse of the two party structure in Puerto Rican politics. For example, due to this decline, the current governor was elected with only 32% of the vote and other alternative political forces, such as the PIP, are growing at full speed.
Currently, neither one of the two colonial parties that have shared power for the past 56-years appear to be showing any signs of life. It is clear that their days are counted. On the other hand, in 2020 the Puerto Rican Independence Party experienced its highest growth. In this past election, El PIP grew by 700%, obtaining 14% of the vote. It is very important to note, that the votes from el PIP combined with the votes from a new emerging party called, Movimiento Victoria Ciudadana (MVC), made up 28% of the vote. As you can see, this 28% is very close to the 32% obtained by the incumbent governor in the past election. If the PIP and the MVC were to join forces, a victory in 2024 would be possible! So far, a considerable number of leaders in the MVC, (many of whom are pro-independence), have shown their willingness to join forces with El PIP and with Juan Dalmau, the PIP’s candidate for governor in 2024. Therefore, as you can see, a lot great things are in store for the Puerto Rican independence movement in the next few years and a victory is possible in the 2024 election.
I ask you to join us in this historic moment. Please stay tuned and be active in Puerto Rican politics because, in 2024, we can elect Juan Dalmau as the first pro-independence governor of Puerto Rico. We are sure that Hartford, Connecticut will be part of this milestone in the history of our homeland.
¡Que Viva Gloria Gerena y que Viva Puerto Rico Libre!