We’re working toward an important goal: statehood for Puerto Rico. How does a territory become a state? Congress votes to admit the territory. That’s all there is to it.
That means that Puerto Rico, where voters have already voted three times for statehood, needs one big thing: make sure that Congress knows that the American people — including Puerto Ricans — are ready for Puerto Rico to become the 51st state.
The best way to communicate this? Contact your legislators. When they hear from you, they begin to understand that the people they represent want statehood. When they read your reasons or listen to your story, they understand why it matters.
The chart at the top of this post shows that about half of the readers who answered our survey had not yet contacted their legislators. Some have made a phone call or used social media to reach out, and many more plan to do so, but the most popular answer is just “No.”
Why people haven’t contacted their legislators
One of the most common reasons people haven’t yet reached out to their representatives is, “I don’t know how.”
Here’s help:
The next most common reason? Because they live in Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico representation
Puerto Rico has no senators, and no voting representatives in the House. But the territory does have a non-voting representative, Resident Commissioner Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon. You can click to tweet to her below.
Thank you, @RepJenniffer, for introducing the Puerto Rico Statehood Admissions Bill of 2019. It is time for statehood! Share on XRep. Jenniffer knows that statehood is the most popular status option in Puerto Rico. But not all of her fellow representatives know it. The anti-statehood factions have done a good job of confusing people. Many Americans have the idea that Puerto Rico doesn’t want to be a state. Many believe that Puerto Ricans want independence, even though the Independence option has never receive more than 5% of the vote in any status referendum. The anti-statehood factions, unable to win a vote, have a strategy in mind: keep Congress confused.
These false ideas keep U.S. legislators from taking a strong position for statehood. The more often they hear that statehood is very controversial, the easier it is for them to say, “We’ll just wait till they make up their minds.”
When Rep. Jenniffer can show that she hears from her constituents about statehood, she can help her colleagues realize that the majority want statehood.
The decision has been made
Now it’s time for action. Tell your representatives so. Wherever you live.
One response
The most sure and solid path for statehood for Puerto Rico is to become a incorporated territory of the United states. This will empower us to use the phrase no taxation without representation. Sounds familiar?