Instruct: Given a question, retrieve documents that can help answer the question.
Query: Is Puerto Rico a colony of the United States?
During its 8th session, the United Nations General Assembly recognized Puerto Rico's self-government on November 27, 1953, with Resolution 748 (VIII).[87] (UN Resolution "748 (VIII)", adopted on November 27, 1953, during its 459th Plenary Meeting.) This removed Puerto Rico's classification as a non-self-governing territory (under article 73(e) of the Charter of the United Nations). The resolution passed, garnering a favorable vote from some 40% of the General Assembly, with over 60% abstaining or voting against it (20 to 16, plus 18 abstentions). Today, however, the UN "still debates whether Puerto Rico is a colony" or not.[88]
Under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 which was ratified on December 10, 1898, Puerto Rico was annexed by the United States after the 1898 Spanish–American War. Spain had lost its last colony in the Western Hemisphere. The United States established a military government which acted as both head of the army of occupation and administrator of civil affairs. Almost immediately, the United States began the "Americanization" process of Puerto Rico. The U.S. occupation brought about a total change in Puerto Rico's economy and polity and did not apply democratic principles in their colony. Puerto Rico was classified as an "unincorporated territory" which meant that the protections of the United States Constitution — including the right of citizenship — did not automatically apply, because the island belonged to the U.S., but was not part of the U.S.
Bar operations were suspended when, following the surrender of Puerto Rico to the United States at the end of the Spanish–American War, the Military Government suppressed the profession of Attorney. After the Statute of the Bar Association of Puerto Rico was restored, debate ensued among Bar members as to the correct structure of the Bar, due to the transition from Spanish colony to Commonwealth of the United States. The Puerto Rico Bar Association changed in 1911 to be a voluntary association similar to that in many States. In 1932, following lengthy discussion, the voluntary association was converted to a mandatory association; since then all practicing attorneys must be members in order to practice law in the United States territory of Puerto Rico, with a number of exceptions, e.g. Federal judges may voluntarily withdraw from the organization.
Minority parties have expressed different positions: in 2005, Communist Party USA passed a resolution about Puerto Rico, condemning American imperialism, "colonialism," etc., while stating that "the Communist Party of the USA ... continues its support for independence of Puerto Rico and the transfer of all sovereign powers to Puerto Rico." Their platform supported the people's "acquisition of their internationally recognized right to independence and self-determination ..." In 2012, the Green Party of the United States had a platform supporting independence. Socialist Party USA does not support independence for Puerto Rico, but calls for "full representation for the U.S. territories of Guam and Puerto Rico, all Native American reservations, and the District of Columbia."
Even though Puerto Rico was granted local autonomy in 1952, it remains a territory of the United States. Its ambiguous status continues to spark political debates which dominate Puerto Rican society. The debate over Puerto Rico has been discussed at various UN hearings where it has been declared a colony of the United States by the UN Special Committee on Decolonization. Various Presidents of the United States have expressed themselves in favor of statehood but ultimately left the decision to Puerto Rico. President's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status were published in 2005, 2007 and 2011. Non-binding referenda regarding Puerto Rico's status have been held in 1967, 1993, 1997, 2012, and 2017.
In 1898, after the Spanish–American War when Puerto Rico became a colonial territory of the United States, Quiñones joined the Puerto Rican Republican Party founded by José Celso Barbosa and which championed the idea of converting Puerto Rico into a state of the U.S.. Quiñones was elected and served as a representative in Puerto Rico's House of Representatives in 1900 and 1902. Francisco Mariano Quiñones is buried in the City of San Germán, Puerto Rico.
Pedró Albizu Campos's legacy is the subject of discussion among supporters and detractors. Lolita Lebrón called him "Puerto Rico's most visionary leader" and nationalists consider him "one of the island's greatest patriots of the 20th century." In describing his legacy, social scientist Juan Manuel Carrión wrote that "Albizu still represents a forceful challenge to the very fabric of [Puerto Rico's] colonial political order." His followers state that Albizu's political and military actions served as a primer for positive change in Puerto Rico, including the improvement of labor conditions for peasants and workers, a more accurate assessment of the colonial relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States, and an awareness by the political establishment in Washington, D.C. of this colonial relationship. Supporters state that the legacy is that of an exemplary sacrifice for the building of the Puerto Rican nation ... a legacy of resistance to colonial rule. His critics say that he "failed to attract and offer concrete solutions to the struggling poor and working class people and thus was unable to spread the revolution to the masses."
This United States Custom House in Ponce is the oldest extant customhouse in Puerto Rico. Built in 1841-42, the adobe building of the Spanish era was remodeled by the United States in 1924. It is historically and architecturally significant for its antiquity and its importance in the Spanish period of customs administration in Puerto Rico, as it is the only one of its type among U.S. Customs Service properties. It is also significant for the role it played in the transitional phase of the American customs service in Puerto Rico, from 1898 to 1930. This period is bracketed at one end by the cession on 10 December 1898 of the island of Puerto Rico to the United States by Spain and on the other end by the completion in 1930 of the major building and rehabilitation program undertaken by the U.S. Customs Service following World War I. The Ponce Custom House is an important example of the Spanish-Colonial architecture outside of Old San Juan.
Despite the Spanish translation of the term "commonwealth", Puerto Rico's relationship with United States is not a Compact of Free Association (which is the case for the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, and the Marshall Islands). As sovereign states, these islands have full right to conduct their own foreign relations, while the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is part of the United States as a territory. The Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico says that in 1952 there was a pact between Puerto Rico and the United States that gave Puerto Rico an autonomous government and removed it from the list of colonies.
After Puerto Rico was ceded to the United States as part of the Treaty of Paris, the United States and Puerto Rico began a long-standing metropolis-colony relationship. It is at this time that Puerto Rico became subject to the Commercial and Territory Clause of the U.S. Constitution, clauses that restrict how and with whom can Puerto Rico engage internationally. The territory also became, as a byproduct, subject to the different treaties and trade agreements ratified by the United States.
Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007 (H.R. 900 & S. 1936) Puerto Rican citizenship Voting rights in Puerto Rico Politics of Puerto Rico 51st state Puerto Rico (proposed state) Sovereigntism (Puerto Rico) Special Committee on Decolonization United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories Proposed political status for Puerto Rico Statehood movement in Puerto Rico Privileges and Immunities Clause Territories of the United States United States territorial court Federal tribunals in the United States Index of Puerto Rico-related articles
The administration of Puerto Rico was the responsibility of the United States Department of War's Division of Insular Affairs which was molded after the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Almost immediately, the United States began the 'Americanization" process of Puerto Rico. The U.S. occupation brought about a total change in Puerto Rico's economy and polity and did not apply democratic principles to the colony. Puerto Rico was classified as an 'unincorporated territory" which meant that the protections of the United States Constitution did not automatically apply because the island belonged to the U.S., but was not part of the U.S.
As it is a territory of the United States of America, the defense of Puerto Rico is provided by the United States as part of the Treaty of Paris with the President of the United States as its commander-in-chief. Puerto Rico has its own Puerto Rico National Guard, and its own state defense force, the Puerto Rico State Guard, which by local law is under the authority of the Puerto Rico National Guard.
"Banco Popular de Puerto Rico" can trace its roots to 1893, when Puerto Rico was still a Spanish colony. That year, fifty-two stockholders provided the initial capital to establish the "Sociedad Anonima de Economias y Prestamos" ( The Anonymous Savings & Loan Society), a savings bank for the poor. However the United States invaded Puerto Rico during the Spanish–American War in 1898, and the island was annexed by the U.S. under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 which was ratified on December 10, 1898. Almost immediately, the United States began the "Americanization" process of Puerto Rico. The U.S. occupation brought about a total change in Puerto Rico's economic and political life. Amongst the many industries appropriated and controlled by the U.S. Government, were Puerto Rico's financial and banking institutions.
In 1936, Campos del Toro was appointed assistant to the Puerto Rico attorney general. In 1943 he was appointed president of the Puerto Rico Industrial Commission. In 1944, at a time when the Governor of Puerto Rico was still an appointee of the President of the United States, Campos del Toro was appointed Coordinator of Insular Affairs by the colonial Governor of Puerto Rico.
In 1993 the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit stated that Congress may unilaterally repeal the Puerto Rican Constitution or the Puerto Rican Federal Relations Act and replace them with any rules or regulations of its choice. In a 1996 report on a Puerto Rico status political bill, the U.S. House Committee on Resources stated, "Puerto Rico's current status does not meet the criteria for any of the options for full self-government under Resolution 1541" (the three established forms of full self-government being stated in the report as (1) national independence, (2) free association based on separate sovereignty, or (3) full integration with another nation on the basis of equality). The report concluded that Puerto Rico "... remains an unincorporated colony and does not have the status of 'free association' with the United States as that status is defined under United States law or international practice", that the establishment of local self-government with the consent of the people can be unilaterally revoked by the U.S. Congress, and that U.S. Congress can also withdraw the U.S. citizenship of Puerto Rican residents of Puerto Rico at any time, for a legitimate Federal purpose. The application of the U.S. Constitution to Puerto Rico is limited by the Insular Cases.
The experimental play dramatizes the plight of Latino prisoners in the United States, Puerto Rico's position as an American territory, and Braschi's struggle for liberty. By having the people of Puerto Rico vote on Segismundo's liberty, the work satirizes the three political options of Puerto Rico: statehood, nation, and colony.
In 2017, the novel was adapted as a Swedish graphic novel illustrated by Joakim Lindengren.
In 1998, "Son del Batey" was founded in San Juan, Puerto Rico, by a group of college students at the University of Puerto Rico in Mayagüez. 1998 marked the 100-year anniversary of the United States invasion of Puerto Rico, and a time when popular discourse focused around national identity and colonialism throughout the island.
Beginning with Christopher Columbus's arrival on the island in 1493, Spain colonized Puerto Rico. In 1898, Puerto Rico was ceded to the United States, at the end of the Spanish–American War. The United States then refused to pay the colony's creditors, asserting they held odious debt.
On October 30, 1950, a Nationalist Party uprising occurred in Puerto Rico. The uprising was a call for independence against United States Government rule of Puerto Rico. It was also a protest against the approval of the creation of the political status the "Free Associated State of Puerto Rico" or how it is legally known, the "Commonwealth of Puerto Rico" ("Estado Libre Asociado") for Puerto Rico which was considered a colonial farce. Numerous Nationalists were arrested, among Cancel Miranda's father. In 1951, he published an article in a Havana paper to commemorate the first anniversary of that uprising. The United States embassy learned about it and demanded that the Prío Socarrás government turn him over along with another Puerto Rican, Reynaldo Trilla, but the Cuban authorities ignored them.
The official Spanish name of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is "Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico", literally, "Associated Free State of Puerto Rico", expressing a "politically organized community” or “State,” which is simultaneously connected by a compact to a larger political system and hence does not have an independent and separate status. However, according to the United States Supreme Court, Puerto Rico is not free or associated; it is only a state in the general sense, not as a state of the Union in the U.S. constitutional sense. According to consistent U.S. Supreme Court jurisprudence, Puerto Rico belongs to but is not an integral part (Organized incorporated territory) of the United States. Moreover, the said jurisprudence has determined that regardless of what nominal or cosmetic veneer has moted Puerto Rico's political status, it is essentially a U.S. colonial territory, since it is under the plenary powers of the U.S. Congress. At its most basic, this Supreme Court doctrine expresses that Puerto Rico is more like property, far from a free-governing community or nation, and thus "domestic in a foreign sense" (not for the taking or meddling by free foreign nations), but "foreign in a domestic sense" (not a partner or an equal). In the Insular Cases, the Court ruled that the United States Constitution does not automatically apply in Puerto Rico.
In 1898, the United States achieved victory in the Spanish–American War with Spain, ending the Spanish colonial era. Spanish possession and rule of its remaining colonies in the Americas ended in that year with its sovereignty transferred to the United States. The United States took occupation of Cuba, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico continues to be a possession of the United States, now officially continues as a self-governing unincorporated territory.
On August 13, 1898, Spain ceded Puerto Rico to the United States as part of the Treaty of Paris, bringing the Puerto Rican Campaign to an end. The "Banco Español de Puerto Rico" was then transferred to invading investors. However, the terms signed in the armistice, stated that the United States would have to respect all the charters that were previously granted by Spain to its former colonies. This was certified by the United States Congress on June 6, 1900. Thus, the bank continued issuing provincial currency in Puerto Rico, but was renamed "El Banco de Puerto Rico" or Bank of Puerto Rico. The capital used by the currency was changed from "peso" to dollars, giving birth to the Puerto Rican dollar. A proposal to print 1-dollar banknotes was suggested, but refused citing that it could "bring dangerous results". Series C bills were issued with a release date of "May 1, 1900" and were overstamped with "Moneda Americana" in bold red letters. They bore the signatures of the new bank governor Carlos María Soler and cashier Manuel Vicente. This marked the first and only time that currency valorized in dollars was issued outside the United States.
Series E was introduced subsequently. The banknotes for this issue were bilingual, featuring the bank's name both in Spanish and English. Early specimens for Series F were produced in 1907, but they never reached circulation. The bills for this issue featured the profiles of Christopher Columbus and Juan Ponce de León. The colonial government intended to eliminate all Spanish captions from these notes, intending to accelerate a failed "Americanization" process in Puerto Rico. Series F ultimately entered circulation on July 1, 1909, still featuring bilingual captions and exhibiting a higher degree of technical quality. In 1913, the charter granted by Spain expired and the bank was closed and its assets were liquidated. After this date, Puerto Rico's economy was fully integrated into the United States' currency system, while Puerto Rican dollars were redeemed for United States dollars. Banknotes valorized in millions continued in circulation, thus a collect was ordered and held between January 16 – 24, 1916. The remaining bills, with an estimated value of $14,872 were taken out of circulation nine years later by the Puerto Rico Commercial Bank.
On February 21, 2006, Pedro Rosselló set out to denounce "U.S. persistent colonialism in Puerto Rico" by organizing a march for the end of US colonialism in Puerto Rico ("La Marcha por el Fin de la Colonia"). The stated purpose of the march was to expose the colonial status of Puerto Rico, and exhort the United States Congress to pass a bill that would allow the self-determination of the people of Puerto Rico, with congressionally mandated non-territorial, non-colonial options. Rosselló is a vocal and prominent supporter of statehood for the island, wanting Puerto Rico to become the 51st state of the (United States). The march covered the complete perimeter of Puerto Rico, tracing its coastline for 16 days and 271.3 miles. The United States Congress has not acted on any requests from the march's organizers.
Before the United States captured Puerto Rico from Spain in 1898, the colony was agriculture based. Most worked on sugar cane, tobacco, or coffee plantations. Through the beginning of the 20th century, Puerto Ricans remained agricultural. Operation Bootstrap, an operation of the United States and the Puerto Rico Economic Development Administration, began in 1942 and was put in place to transform Puerto Rico into an industrial colony. Government owned factories were built to shift development to industrial factory work and, eventually, education of the factory work force. The growth of Puerto Rican industry changed the outlook on familial social structure.