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Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico was invaded by the US in 1898 after winning independence from Spain. An independence movement has thrived ever since that has reasserted a right to self-determination and an end to US colonialism. Includes extensive material on Puerto Rican Independentistas, political prisoners, prisoners of war* and land rights as well as struggles in the diaspora.

This collection contains sub-collections focused on political parties and organizations committed to the struggle for Puerto Rican independence, groups and organizations founded to support political prisoners and prisoners of war and general information. 

*Prisoners of War:
On October 12, 1970, UN resolution 2621 approved by the General Assembly, declared colonialism an international crime. Said resolution reaffirmed the right of any intervened, colonized nation to utilize whatever form of struggle is necessary to obtain its independence. Armed struggle, military resistance and whatever form of struggle that leads to the independence of nations that are colonized, invaded and occupied by foreign military troops, is recognized as a right by the UN. Puerto Rico, by virtue of being a colonial state is supported by International Law.

International Law is also very specific in reference to prisoners of war. According to the Geneva Convention, combatants who have declared themselves prisoners of war must be recognized as such. Those Puerto Ricans arrested were armed and accused of belonging to the Armed Forces of Puerto Rican National Libertion. The nature of the arrest and the US government's own indictment only serves to reaffirm that the eleven were combatants in the struggle for Puerto Rican independence at the time of their arrests. According to the Geneva Treaty, ratified by the UN in 1949, captured soldiers are prisoners of war. It is thus the argument of the eleven that they are prisoners of war.

Subcollections

  • Free Puerto Rican POWs and Political Prisoners
    The National Committee to Free Puerto Rican POWs and Political Prisoners, 1981-1998, campaigned around many issues, regarding the 15 Puerto Rican Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War.
  • Fuerzas Armadas de Liberacion Nacional (FALN)
    The FALN was an anti-colonial and anti-imperialist clandestine organization based in the diaspora using armed propaganda to advocate for Puerto Rican independence.
  • Libertad
    Bi-lingual newsletters produced from 1979-1998 by the Committee to Free Puerto Rican Prisoners of war. Libertad’s primary mission was to organize support for Puerto Rican prisoners of war incarcerated by the United States.
  • Movimiento de Liberacion Nacional
    Formed to analyze attempts by the US government to crush the Puerto Rican independence movement, and to form a new political vehicle to resist this oppression.
  • New Movement
    An anti-imperialist group in solidarity with the Puerto Rican Independence movement, it supported all aspects of the Puerto Rican Independence Movement- including clandestine groups on the island and in the Diaspora.
  • Puerto Rico Small Books and Monographs
    This collection contains books and monographs pertaining to the independence struggle of Puerto Rico. Many of these books were written by major figures in the Puerto Rican Independence movement and discuss a variety of topics.
  • Puerto Rico: A History of the People
    This collection contains documents detailing the various struggles of Puerto Ricans against foreign invaders from the arrival of the Spanish to the current occupation by the United States of America.
  • Que Ondee Sola
    Que Ondee Sola was established in 1972 and remains the oldest Puerto Rican/Latina/o university student publication in print.

Documents

Puerto Rican Solidarity Day Puerto Rican Solidarity Day
Date: 10/27/1974Call Number: LA 157Format: CassetteCollection: Puerto Rico
This bilingual broadcast of Puerto Rican Solidarity Day features Bay Area and international activists shedding light on the history of US and Spanish domination of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican resistance, the movement for independence, and the connections of those struggles with the struggles of oppressed people throughout the world. The event begins with the comical, yet serious play by Bay Area Grupo Claridad and Mexican Grupo Zapilote portraying how indigenous Puerto Ricans have been exploited and manipulated in the past by the colonial Spanish conquerors and in the present by United States politicians and oil, coffee, and sugar tycoons. The groups convey the message that in spite of this foreign domination, Puerto Ricans have maintained a rich tradition of spiritual, cultural, and political resistance that will continue until Puerto Rico is free. A quick interlude showcases the Puerto Rican National Anthem sung by Lolado Rodriguez, followed by an introductory political and economic history lesson and statement of solidarity with the Puerto Rican Independence Movement by organizer Ruth Rodriguez. Rodriguez highlights the industrialization of Latin America, Puerto Rican unemployment, militarism, cultural genocide, and the struggle of Puerto Rican political prisoners. Enrique Valle Ester of Sopelote then sings two Mexican folk songs illustrating Latin American resistance to U.S. imperialism. The event is concluded with a speech on the connections of the American Indian Movement to the Puerto Rican freedom movement, by one of the original founders of the American Indian Movement, the Red School House, and the Freedom School for Native American Children, Eddie Sounding Voice Benton.
Interview with Puerto Rican Revolutionary Workers Organization Interview with Puerto Rican Revolutionary Workers Organization
Date: 1/1/1974Call Number: KP 239Format: 1/4 7 1/2 ipsCollection: Puerto Rico
Interview about state of Puerto Rican Independence movement.
Puerto Rico Superport: Rest of the News Puerto Rico Superport: Rest of the News
Date: 10/7/1974Call Number: KP 314Format: 1/4 7 1/2 ipsProducers: rest of the newsCollection: Puerto Rico
Report on plans for building a super port in Puerto Rico, includes discussion of UNB decolonization resolution, mass sterilization of Puerto Rican women, US control of Puerto Rican government.
Que Ondee Sola Que Ondee Sola
Publisher: Que Ondee SolaYear: 1974Volume Number: Vol. 4-2 OctoberFormat: PeriodicalCollection: Que Ondee Sola
Bilingual material: Solidarity Day!
35% Puerto Rican Women Sterilized 35% Puerto Rican Women Sterilized
Publisher: Committee for Puerto Rican DecolonizationYear: 1974Volume Number: Vol. 2-5Format: ArticleCollection: Puerto Rico: A History of the People
An article from the Committee for Puerto Rican Decolonization in New York exposing the massive sterilization program carried out by the U.S. Government and the Rockefeller Foundation in response to the "population problem" in Puerto Rico that was seen as responsible for widespread unemployment.