Puerto Rico,

A Quick History.

Don Juan Ponce de Leon was a Spanish conqueror and explorer. He was born around 1460 in San Tervas de Campos, Spain. Ponce de Leon lived during the age of great "discoveries". Ponce de Leon is well known for claiming and naming what is now Florida, the discovery of Puerto Rico, and his never-ending search for the Fountain of Youth!

On November 19, 1493, during his first voyage, Ponce de Leon was one of the first Europeans to see the small island of "Borinquen", the Indian name for Puerto Rico. Ponce de Leon sailed to Puerto Rico again in 1506 with two hundred men and found out that it had rich gold deposits. He didn't take long to take control of the island, and the peaceful "Tainos" were taken into slavery to mine the gold that was found on the island. The gold didn't last long, and in 1511 there was an uprising of the Tainos. Just like other Indians, they believed that the Spaniards were gods, so they took a soldier by the name of Sotomayor and dunked him head first in a river for several hours to see if he would die. Just in case, they had prepared a feast for the Spaniard if he came out alive. He died and they proved that the Spanish were not gods. It wasn't the Spanish sword that took the lives of most of the Taino Indians, but the diseases that were brought from Europe. After Ponce de Leon arrived in Puerto Rico he became the first governor of the island. This caused him to become very wealthy, and the most powerful man on the island, who only received orders from the King himself! In 1511, during the uprising, King Ferdinand ordered Ponce de Leon replaced as governor by Diego Columbus.

The island remained Spanish during conquest attempts by buccaneers, pirates, and the English and Dutch. To protect the island against invasion, two forts, El Morro and San Cristóbal, were built to guard San Juan harbor. Spain neglected Puerto Rico. It was mainly a place to keep the ships that would pass on their way to and from the other richer colonies. Trade with other countries was prohibited, so the island became a place to trade in stolen goods or "contraband" trading with ships from England, the Netherlands, and who ever would trade. Strict and brutal military governors who prevented independence governed Puerto Rico. Slavery and the slave trade, was a way of life with the need for workers on the sugar and coffee plantations.

During the 19th century there was increased immigration from the colonies that were being lost by Spain and this influx of people and capital allowed the creation of many towns and cities. The economy grew and exports of agriculture became prominent, especially coffee and sugar. In 1897 home rule was established for the first time by the Autonomic Charter granted by the Spanish government. Puerto Rico was given the status of a Spanish dominion. Everything changed when the United States defeated Spain in the Spanish-American War. Puerto Rico came under the their control in 1898.

The Foraker Act of 1901 established the relationship of the United States with Puerto Rico and many of its provisions are still in force. The Puerto Ricans were in a citizenship limbo, they were not citizens and the title "Puerto Rican citizen", meant little. It finally changed by the Jones act of 1917, when Puerto Ricans became American Citizens and Puerto Rico became an unincorporated territory of the United States. The economy was based on one-crop agriculture, sugar cane and the lands producing it, and the factories to extract the sugar, were mainly owned by corporations from the United States mainland which paid low wages and repatriated all the profits.

Partial self-government was granted in 1947, enabling citizens to elect their own governor for the first time. In 1952 a new constitution made Puerto Rico an autonomous part of the United States called the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico.

The Flag, and Seal of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico were adopted by the legislative assembly in 1952. Puerto Ricans now have the benefits of American citizenship, including federal government recognition, but Puerto Ricans who live on the island are unable to vote in United States presidential elections despite being subject to service in the armed forces.

There is great public interest in resolving the political status issue and the main difference in the political parties is their differing views of the status issue. The Partido Independista calls for total independence as a nation-state, the Populares support the present commonwealth status, and the Partido Nuevo Progresista advocates statehood, hoping to see, that one day, Puerto Rico would become the 51st state of the United States. The island and its approximately 3.3 million citizens are self-governed as a free associated state of the United States.

This subtropical island has developed into the only Caribbean Island where industry and commerce exceed primary agricultural production. Economically Puerto Rico today has a variety of industrial, commercial, and financial service activities, and a transportation network that is the envy of other Caribbean islands. Statistics show that it has some of the most favorable economic and demographic conditions in the Caribbean and in Latin America. In cooperation with the largest financial institutions of the United States, Puerto Rico has developed into the financial center of the Caribbean, making it a major player in the region's economy.

The people of Puerto Rico maintain a love of their Island or "Isla", they accept the free association with the mainland but always emphasize loyalty to their own culture, way of life, spirit, folklore, hospitality, and identity. Many Puerto Ricans move between the island and the United States mainland to get the "best of both worlds". They have created a unique culture and identity with education, skills, and material wealth. They have passed onto their children a unique citizenship in the United States. Many retire and return to the Island; many more stay in the United States; and with the constant circulation of Puerto Ricans between their homes it is an enduring feature of the "REAL" Puerto Rican experience.

In order to better understand the Puerto Rican experience in the United States we could go to the late 40s and early 50s. Between 1941 and 1956, more than 500,000 Puerto Ricans moved to major cities in the U.S. such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Cleveland. The majority of them lived in the poorer areas of these cities.

Puerto Rican gangs formed so that they could protect themselves from prejudiced Americans. Many people took advantage of the immigrants' poor social status. For example, in the famous play "West Side Story" by Arthur Laurents, Bernardo says, "And Chino makes half what the Polack makes - the Polack is American!".

Youth agencies and youth boards concluded that most gangs formed because of the poverty, disease, and racism present in the ghettos. Gangs, were usually made up of teenagers, fought over girls, territory (otherwise known as "turf"), and racial matters. Italian, Jewish, and Irish gangs were worried that the Puerto Ricans were taking over their "turf". "Turf" could range anywhere from one block to many blocks. It was guarded so strongly that if one gang member entering another gang's territory it could cause a full scale "turf war".

One of the most remembered Puerto Ricans was baseball player is Roberto Clemente was born in "El Barrio San Anton" in Carolina, Puerto Rico, August 18, 1934. He was the youngest of four children. Roberto excelled in track and field, winning medals in the javelin throw and short distance races. However, his real love was baseball. He played amateur baseball with Juncos Double A Club and soon went on to play with the Santurce Crabbers in the Puerto Rican Winter League. From Santurce he signed with Montreal's Triple A team.

Roberto joined the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1955, where he played his entire eighteen year Major League Baseball career from 1955 to 1972. Roberto played in two World Series, batting .310 in 1960 and .414 in 1971. He was the National League Batting Champion four times, was awarded twelve Gold Gloves, selected National League MVP in 1966 and was chosen as the MVP in the 1971 World Series. He was also a 12 time National League All-Star. Throughout his career, he played in 2,433 games. Out of the 9,454 times at bat, Roberto got a hit 3,000 of those times. He had 440 doubles, 166 triples, and 240 homeruns. Roberto had 1,305 RBIs and he scored 1,416 runs for his team.

New Year's Eve, December 31, 2004 will mark the 37th Anniversary of the tragic plane Crash that took his life. The plane was taking medical, food and clothing supplies to Nicaragua, to help out after an earthquake. Vera his wife and friends begged him not to take the trip because of poor weather and an unstable cargo plane, but Roberto was determined. He was upset that the previous supplies had not made it to the victims.

Roberto was going to personally see to it that the victims received the much needed supplies. Unfortunately the plane went down off the coast of Puerto Rico. Roberto's body was never found. Just months after Roberto joined an elite group of players with 3000 hits, he was gone. Roberto's tragic death in 1972 prompted the Hall of Fame's Board of Directors to unanimously wave the customary five year period for induction, which opened a door for the Baseball Writer's Association of America to hold a special election on Clemente's behalf. By an overwhelming vote of 93%, Clemente became the first player of Latin American descent to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Since then only four players have been inducted; Al Lopez in 1977, Juan Marichal in 1983, Luis Aparicio in 1984, and Rod Carew in 1991. It has been 37 years since his unfortunate death and still today Roberto is remembered as one of the greatest athletes and humanitarians of all time.

In 1973, his uniform number 21 was retired by the Pittsburgh Pirates. One of Roberto's dreams, the Roberto Clemente Sports City, is one part of the legacy he left behind. Visitors to Carolina, Puerto Rico are greeted by a twelve foot statue as they enter into a 1,500 acre sports complex. Roberto Clemente's legacy is continued by his wife Vera who has been important in continuing Roberto's Dream.

Most recently, the singer and actress Jennifer Lopez representing the Puerto Rican experience, was born in the United States to Puerto Rican Parents, Jennifer considers herself to be a Puerto Rican and she is very proud of her Hispanic heritage and culture.

Her father is David Lopez, a computer specialist, and her mother Guadalupe Lopez, a Kindergarten teacher. Her parents recognized Jennifer's talent and enthusiasm for performing and at the age of five the enrolled her in dance classes. Her mother said "Jennifer always loved to sing, but she was also a great actress and knew that she would have a bright future ahead of her." With the support of her parents Jennifer grew up to be a very sensible girl, who is still very close to her family. When Jennifer earned her million-dollar paycheck for playing the role in the movie Selena, she bought her mom a Cadillac. Even though they saw Jennifer's talent at the age of five, their relationship was not always understandable. Jennifer made a major decision and that was not to go to College. That decision was very disappointing to her parents who wanted her to go to law school.

When Jennifer told her parents that she was not going to College and law school, they thought it was really stupid to go off and try to be a movie star. Her parents at that time could not understand the choices she made are very happy for their daughter and what she has accomplish. When she left her home at the middle of a fight and never went back. She said," I had to make my own way" and then lived in a Manhattan dance studio where she was training. Then she got an apartment with some friends in Manhattan Hell's Kitchen.

Since the time she moved out of her home she started her show-biz career as a dancer in stage musicals and most notably in her tour to Golden musicals of Broadway and in a Japanese tour. Then she audition to be a fly girl in Fox's hit comedy "In living Colors," she beat out 2,000 other contenders in a nation wide competition. Then she cracked into Hollywood and she wanted to make a transition to acting, but she followed Color producer Keenan Ivory Wayans advice to stay with the show for a while before making any attempt to move on. After a couple of seasons spent in Living Colors, Jennifer got her shot at acting when a co-worker, whose husband was writing and producing a pilot called South Central for Fox, suggested her for the part.

Jennifer brought her television career to an end in 1993, with the role as a heroic Nurses on the line: The crash of Flight 7; the siren call of the big screen could not be put on hold for any longer. In 1995, Jennifer appears in Gregory Nava's critically acclaimed Mi Familia, a film that introduced the actress's talent to top film makers. In 1996, she beat out Ashley Judd and Lauren Holly for the supporting role of Robin Williams's teacher in the Francis Ford comedy Jack. The movie was embarrassing for Jennifer but she was still hot and from there she started in "Money Train" and then Smelling like roses." In 1997 at a wrap party for the film in San Antonio, Jennifer Boyfriend, Ojani Noa, took the microphone and propose to her on the dance floor. Then after one year the couple got divorce.

But then in People Magazine Lopez was named one of the Fifty Most Beautiful people for 1997. It was a good year for Jennifer Lopez she started Blood and Wine, and Oliver Stone's U-Turn and she beat out an A-list actresses to the land the female lead in Steven Soderbergh's 1998 crime film Out of Sight. Then she got "ant-imated", in the Dreamworks tale Antz. Jennifer Lopez now has even portrayed another famous Hispanic singer Selena. The project included a music album and the successful movie "Selena". Her album went number one and was the start her second success story.

Her philosophy is that there is only one way to get where you wanted to go, and that is by being aggressive, persistent and believing in yourself when others don't. In the end hard work, and faith in yourself truly pays off . Jennifer made her dreams come true. Once Jennifer said that she's the best, maybe somewhat arrogant but who can fault her for feeling this way. Jennifer has accomplished a lot and she open doors for other people who want to go into show business.

Puerto Ricans continue to benefit from a rich Puerto Rican Heritage as we have contributed in many ways to the diverse history that is the "American Way of Life".

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