Puerto Rico thread

We are sick and tired of being a colony.

That's the problem. If PR was sick about the current situation, people would have acted a long time ago.

I would like the island to be a state, but polititians (more than Miami, if such a thing exists) are so corrupted over there than I don't trust any of the people behind the movement.

This is something for the US to resolve. I guess the US is not sick and tired of the situation either. the pro-statehood advocates, under the New Progressive Party (NPP) propose exactly what you say: that the US must deal with the status issue, that's why we demand Congress to enact a mechanism that would give PRs a final say on the island's permanent status. Yet, we realize that Congress won't deal with an issue that hasn't even been clarified in the island, as statehood nor independence have ever won a status referendum in Puerto Rico. By celebrating a referendum on asking people if they want Congress to solve the status problem, the political pressure shifts to the US government. Forgive my ignorance, but isn't this a case of be careful what you wish for as far as PR is concerned?

I mean, what if PR gets all belligirant and demands statehood via referendum, then the US tells them to go take a hike?

Isn't PR like Cuba, only a bit farther away and not nearly as cool once Fidel buys the farm and we put our casinos back into Havana? Yes, PR is very much like Cuba, only a couple of times smaller, and therefore without the autonomous economic capabilities of a free Cuba. Several pro statehood activists in Puerto Rico, including myslef, have always warned others about the urgency of resolving PR's status, as the island will suffer greatly as a result of an eventual "opening" of Cuban markets to the world. Economic experts also predict that an awakening of "the Cuban giant" would have strong effects on the Puerto Rican economy, as American investments could move to Cuba, and obviously American tourists, fond of PR, would now have Cuba as a possible destiny.

I understand your point about the risk being taken by demanding for statehood or even a referendum. Although I understand that even if statehood wins with a majority of the votes in a possible referendum, statehood isn't a right, and Congress can deny PR's wishes for incorporation to the Union...we only have one right: self determination, and if independence were to win, the US HAS to grant PR autonomy. Yet, not one country/territory has fulfilled itself without taking risks. The US was safe under the British Empire, but the dreamt of something else, something better than the status quo. With the spirit of our founding father in mind, Puerto Ricans also demand a clarification of our political relation with the United States, even if it results in a separation of the USA.