Tomorrow is the anniversary of the Jones-Shafroth Act, the law that gave the people of Puerto Rico U.S. citizenship on March 2nd, 1917. All residents of Puerto Rico who were not citizens of some other nation, the law said, “are hereby declared and shall be deemed and held to be, citizens of the United States.”
There was an opportunity to refuse this citizenship, but anyone who didn’t refuse U.S. citizenship became a U.S. citizen immediately.
Note that the possibility of being a citizen of the United States and of some other country was specifically denied. There is no reason to think that a citizen of the Republic of Puerto Rico would have the option to remain a citizen of the United States, any more than the U.S. allowed dual citizenship to residents of Puerto Rico back in 1917.
When the people of Puerto Rico became citizens, all new babies born in Puerto Rico from that time forward were also U.S. citizens. But then, just as it is now, a century later, the U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico didn’t have the chance to vote for their president or to have voting representatives in Congress.
The idea of limited citizenship under a territorial status wasn’t popular with everyone. Luis Muñoz Rivera wanted full citizenship and statehood for Puerto Rico. He argued against the version of citizenship being offered in the Jones Act, saying, “My countrymen, who, precisely the same as yours, have their dignity and self respect to maintain, refuse to accept a citizenship of an inferior order, a citizenship of the second class, which does not permit them to dispose of their own resources nor to live their own lives nor to send to this Capitol their proportional representation.”
Muñoz Rivera later spoke in favor of the Jones-Shafroth Act, but did not live long enough to see it become law.
Puerto Rico’s status is the same now as it was 100 years ago. It’s time to change that. The people of Puerto Rico must still refuse to accept a citizenship of an inferior order, as Munoz Rivera put it. We must have full participation in the rights and privileges of citizenship. Puerto Rico must have the full rights of a state.
One response
Alejandro Pantoja Exactly they invaded us, but i know that you read the whole story about the Spanish-American War.
When U.S.S. bombarded at the bay of San Juan they bombarded Spanish military positions that you should know where they were located. On July 25 1898 the North American troops invaded us by the western part of Puerto Rico entering by the town of Guanica. They had to have confronted opposition of Spanish troops and of civilians who opposed to an invasion, in a situation of war that is normal. They bomb and take over P.R. just as you wrote.
Thats why independent countries have military power and compete for territories and go to war and win they seize what they fought for. That what happends in the Spanish-American War, North American defeat the Spanish and all the spanish colonies are transferred to be colonies of North America like Puerto Rico. You wrote that democratically they usually do. The democratic way began after the military governor of the law foraker as you very well know.
Citizenship did not put it as you wrote “a la cañona” They did not put a pistol on the head for us to accept it.
They just gave it to us. With the passage of time many learned to value it the meaning of being citizens of U.S.A.
There are only a few who despise the citizenship that they gave us for being born in P.R. Territory of U.S.A.
The President of the United States of America can not only solve the problem of the territorial status of P.R. Nor the United Nations, the United Nations is an organization created by the United States of America. The status and territory of P.R. Is a matter entirely of U.S.A.
Why it took so long to resolve the status of P.R. By all the political parties that do not have the will to do the right thing by their ambitions of powers and do not do the things in benefit to us like citizens. For that reason we are so far in this situation of Economic, Security, Education and Health. The guilt is shared and if we do not unite as citizens this will continue from bad to worse.
Puerto Rico we are in a historical moment to be able to get up together and leave aside our indifference.
I believe there is hope above all and especially in God Almighty in the goodwill of the U.S. Congress and we as citizens. The culmination of the virtue of equality of staging for the United States citizens in the territory of Puerto Rico as Statehood now.
One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
God bless Israel, U.S.A. and P.R.