One of the main issues of Puerto Rico is the fact that it is an unincorporated United States territory, which means the location has no statehood privileges, and it cannot proclaim itself as a fully independent nation. From a historical perspective, it is evident that such a state of affairs led to political turbulence, where certain political movements and parties emerged in response to these conditions. Both Nationalist Party-led and founded by Pedro Albizu Campos and Puerto Rico Independence Party (PIP) strived to achieve independence and autonomy, but they utilized different means to gain the goal.
PIP was a political party and movement which established as a direct opposition to Popular Democratic Party (PDP), which dominated Puerto Rico and was highly US-friendly. PIP was founded in 1946 by Gilberto Concepción de Gracia and his colleagues because there was a strong perception that PDP was not representing the interests of the nation. It is important to note that the movement emerged as a result of continuous turmoil, where one group strived for obtaining a statehood and others sought full independence (Oboler and González 494).
Such a sequence of events was also facilitated by the fact that Puerto Rico has a long history of colonial suppression, which was started by Spain and continued with the US. However, PIP was not radical by any means, which is why the Nationalist Party was established by Albizu Campos, who became the leader of the movement in 1930 (Oboler and González 498). The goals revolved around using radical approaches to gain the overall attention of international organizations, such as the United Nations, as well as Congress.
The main reasons for fighting for independence were manifested in the fact that Puerto Rico struggled to be fully autonomous for a long period of time. The nation did not experience full independence since Spanish colonialism, which brought some improvements to the island in the 1700s, and a certain sense of identity and uniqueness was developed in the 18th century (Oboler and González 494). However, the primary reasons involved the notion that Puerto Rico was unincorporated from the United States, which did not give the nation a statehood or complete autonomy. The local people perceived the current state of affairs as a continuation of colonialism with no hope for independence.
In order to gain Puerto Rican independence, the Nationalist Party undertook radical and provoking measures, which were confronted accordingly. Although there were a series of different historical events, the two most prominent actions of the party took place in 1950 and 1954. In 1950, the Nationalist Insurrection took place, where the party conducted armed attacks “against the Governor’s Palace in San Juan, Blair House (President Truman’s residence), and police headquarters around the island” (Oboler and González 494).
In 1954, four members of the Nationalist Party wounded four members of Congress in an attack at the U.S. House of Representatives (Oboler and González 494). In other words, the Nationalist party under the leadership of Albizu Campos made radical attempts to gain attention and deliver the message of Puerto Rico’s goal of independence.
It is critical to point out that both federal and colonial governments responded promptly to these events. Governor and leader of PDP, Munoz Marin, responded to the 1950 Nationalist Insurrection by deploying 3500 National Guard soldiers, which resulted in 28 people dead and 50 people severely injured (Oboler and González 499). In addition, towns were heavily bombarded by tanks of the National Guard, which led to high levels of infrastructure damage. The 1954 attack on the U.S. House of Representatives resulted in death sentences for all attackers, but President Truman changed the sentence to life imprisonment (Oboler and González 500).
A similar event took place in 1950, where two Nationalist Party members attempted to assassinate President Truman but failed after several police officers were killed. They were also sentenced to death, but the President changed the latter to life imprisonment (Oboler and González 500). In other words, it is evident that the Nationalist Party was utilizing the most radical measures to achieve independence by gaining the attention of the United States, the United Nations, and the globe.
Although the radical approaches utilized by the Nationalist Party gained the desired attention of the press and the US in general, it can be argued that no significant changes were achieved. In other words, the attempts to gain independence were futile in regards to obtaining any form of autonomy. On the contrary, the political movements of Puerto Rico became highly monitored by the government agencies since it was evident that the island was capable of undertaking extreme measures.
However, the lack of desired outcomes does not mean that the struggle for independence was not worth the sacrifice. Both moderate and radical attempts were worthwhile since the United States and the international community became aware that Puerto Rico seeks autonomy. Nevertheless, it can be argued that such extreme measures were the results of years of ignoring and inattentiveness.
In conclusion, Puerto Rico has a long history of colonial suppression, which started with the Spanish invasion and still continues under the United States. The lack of proper representation of the interests of the local people by the PDP led to the emergence of the PIP and the Nationalist Party. The latter undertook radical measures to gain the attention of the federal government and international organizations, where a number of attacks took place.
Work Cited
Oboler, Suzanne, and Deena J. González. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States. Oxford University Press, 2005.