Puerto Rico Archives

25Jul

By Shoah - The Palestinian HolocaustNo Comments

Puerto Rico, Venezuela

Redefining US-Latin American Relations

Medea Benjamin and Steve Ellner propose that the US be a "Good Neighbor" with Cuba and Venezuela. Medea Benjamin, Steve Ellner The Monroe Doctrine, still alive, is harmful to the people of Latin America. (Archive) An all-encompassing expression of goodwill in the form of a New Good Neighbor Policy will meet resistance from vested economic and military interests, as well as those persuaded by racist arguments. The Trump administration dusted off the 19th-century Monroe Doctrine that subjugates the nations of the region to U.S. interests. The Biden administration, instead of reversing course, followed suit, with disastrous results for the region and a migration crisis that threatens Biden’s re-election. It has left most of Trump’s sanctions against Venezuela and Cub...

The Progressive Tide in Latin America and the Spectre of the New Monroe Doctrine

7Dec

By Shoah - The Palestinian HolocaustNo Comments

Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, South America, Venezuela

The Progressive Tide in Latin America and the Spectre of the New Monroe Doctrine

By: Aishik Saha “They have the force and will be able to dominate us, but social forces can be arrested by neither crime nor force. History is ours, and the people make history”- The Last Radio Broadcast of Salvador Allende The defeat of Jair Bolsonaro in the recently held elections in Brazil at the hands of Lula led Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) marks the latest and perhaps most significant victory in a chain of leftist victories in the continent that the United States has traditionally regarded as its backyard. The long history of intervention by the US in order to install dictators overthrowing popularly elected rulers in the region has left a deep and indelible mark on the politics, economy, and history of the region. American private companies have developed entrenched ...

Left Resurgence in Latin America and Tasks Ahead

6Dec

By Shoah - The Palestinian HolocaustNo Comments

Cuba, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Venezuela

Left Resurgence in Latin America and Tasks Ahead

LATIN AMERICA: LEFT RESURGENCE, FAR RIGHT THREATS Recent developments in Latin America epitomise the global struggle between a resurgent left, and a powerful, internationally linked far-right, between visions of social justice and environmental protection, and a destructive corporate capitalism bent on escalating plunder. The rise to power of left wing political forces in Chile and Colombia, and the hair's-breadth defeat of the fascist Bolsonaro by Lula's Worker's Party in Brazil have been deeply heartening for progressive observers across the world. At the same time, there are many complexities to this picture including the limitations of 'post-neoliberal' welfare measures based on extractivism and high commodity prices, continuing deeply embedded structural racism and exclusion o...

Puerto Rico: between colonialism, racism and slavery on July 25

3Oct

By Shoah - The Palestinian HolocaustNo Comments

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico: between colonialism, racism and slavery on July 25

July 25 is the date of the US invasion of Puerto Rico, and also the day of the creation of the “commonwealth.” Racism keeps it in a state of colonial impotence, based on court cases from the era of slavery. By: Antonio A. Camacho Camacho (Se puede leer este artículo en español aquí.) Despite the harsh reality that Puerto Rico is neither free, nor associated, nor a state, July 25 marks the day of the creation of the constitution of the “Free Associated State,” or commonwealth, of Puerto Rico. I write this article with the purpose of revealing some details about the Anglo-Saxon-supremacist jurisprudence that gave rise to and govern this colonial territorial status. Before we travel back in time, let me point out that Section 2 of Article 3 of the United States constit...

Protestors Resist Militarized Gentrification of Public Beaches in Puerto Rico

15Aug

By Shoah - The Palestinian HolocaustNo Comments

Puerto Rico

Protestors Resist Militarized Gentrification of Public Beaches in Puerto Rico

Two Puerto Rico National Guard members patrol the Escambron beach in San Juan, Puerto Rico on November 19, 2020. (Photo: Jose Jimenez/Getty Images). The beaches belong to the people. They are not for sale. JAMES BARATTA As private interests eviscerate the public sector and vulture funds pillage Puerto Rico amid the debt crisis, there are few remaining bastions of public good on the island. One of those remaining bastions are Puerto Rico's historically public beaches—spaces that many have sought to protect in recent years amid looming privatization. When scores of officers from the Puerto Rico Police Department (PRPD) converged on Los Almendros Beach in Rincón to ensure the rebuilding of a swimming pool, which Hurricane María reduced to rubble, it sparke...

4Mar

By SHOAHNo Comments

Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, South America, USA, Venezuela

From Monroe to Trump. US Sponsored Military Coups in Latin America

By Global Research New Video: Syrian Armed Forces Teach ‘2nd Strongest NATO Army’ Painful Lesson in Idlib By South Front, Units of the Russian Military Police entered the town of Saraqib in eastern Idlib following the second liberation of the town from al-Qaeda terrorists and Turkish forces. According to the Russian military, the deployment took place at 5:00pm local time on March 2 and was intended to provide security and allow traffic through the M4 and M5 highways. In fact, the Russians came to put an end to Turkish attempts to capture the town and cut off the M5 highway in this area. From Monroe to Trump. US Sponsored Military Coups in Latin America By Elson Concepción Pérez, The latest threat to Venezuela of a possible military intervention, the recent cou...

3Sep

By SHOAHNo Comments

Puerto Rico, USA

The Puerto Rico Crisis: A Reflection of a Flawed US Democracy

The recent resignation of Governor Rosselló should be understood within the larger framework of a flawed US democratic state that continues its economic stranglehold over Puerto Rico. by: Carlos Figueroa San Juan, Puerto Rico/USA in July 2019 (Photo: © Osvaldo Olmos / Shutterstock) On August 2, Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rosselló of the New Progressive Party (NPP) — nominally affiliated with the Democrats, although once linked to the Republicans under Governor Luis Ferré Aguayo — finally resigned. The decision came after weeks of mass protests over the island’s fiscal instability, alleged political corruption and most recent scandalous chats on the Telegram messaging app. His resignation will go down as one of the most important in Puerto Rico’s political history because it s...

27Nov

By SHOAHNo Comments

Puerto Rico, USA

Puerto Rico Religious Leaders Criticize Debt Plans and Negotiations

For Immediate Release Friday, November 16, 2018 Organization Profile: Jubilee USA Network Contact: 202.783.3566 ex. 106 WASHINGTON - Puerto Rico's Catholic Archbishop and an Evangelical leader who heads the island's bible society criticized a debt agreement and ongoing debt negotiations. "We are strongly opposed to the COFINA debt deal," wrote the religious leaders in a statement referencing a recently approved plan on a type of debt backed by sales taxes. The plan was approved by Puerto Rico's government and oversight board and covers about $17 billion of the total $72 billion debt of the US Territory. A year ago, Puerto Rico was decimated by two hurricanes. "Before the hurricanes, we wrestled with the fact that nearly 60% of our children lived in povert...

28Sep

By SHOAHNo Comments

Puerto Rico, USA

Puerto Rico One Year Later: We’re Fighting for Justice and Prosperity

NOVANEWS It has been a year since the impact of Maria. Here in Puerto Rico, there are still families living in the dark, homes without a roof, people who haven’t been able to find a new job after their businesses were destroyed, and people mourning their lost loved ones. This is climate injustice in action. by: Amira Odeh Day before Hurricane Maria. Taken in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. ( Photo: Amira Odeh) One year ago, I lived the scariest day of my life. As the wind blew I could hear things falling and breaking outside. The walls of my (concrete-built) home were vibrating and water was coming in through every single window and door. At the moment I could only think of how to prepare for the worst and to be ready to seek refuge inside a closet or a bathroom. It has ...

21Sep

By SHOAHNo Comments

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico’s Colonial Legacy and Its Continuing Economic Troubles

NOVANEWS Given that the people of Puerto Rico have no democratic representation or say in this process, it is not surprising that their colonial rulers are ignoring their needs by: Lara Merling Puerto Rico did not receive the same federal support that US states do, meaning that as the economy worsened, its government had to foot the bill for a large share of social programs.(Photo: ep_jhu/Flickr/cc) When Puerto Rico was hit by Hurricane Maria, the island was ill-equipped to handle the storm that claimed thousands of lives and devastated most of the island's infrastructure, leaving it in the dark for months. Prior to the storm, Puerto Rico’s economy had already experienced two decades without economic growth, a rare occurrence in the history of modern capitalism....