From Team AOC <[email protected]>
Subject Puerto Rico Status Act: Explained!
Date December 17, 2022 9:06 PM
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[ [link removed] ]Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for Congress


Thursday was a historic day: the Puerto Rico Status Act
passed the House.

For the first time in U.S. history, the House of Representatives has
acknowledged that the United States is a colonizing force and that Puerto
Rico is, in fact, an extended colony. 

In this email, we’ll walk you through some of the bill’s contents. While
the bill does not address all critical issues for Puerto Ricans, it plants
seeds for the path ahead in the process of decolonization for Puerto Rico.

Decolonization does not happen with one vote — it is a profound and
wide-reaching political, cultural, economic, and psychological endeavor.
Alexandria and our team would like to recognize the people of Hawaii, the
U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana
Islands, and all indigenous people and descendants of the enslaved. 

We stand together ✊🏼

Team AOC 

[ [link removed] ]CHIP IN $3 TO SUPPORT ALEXANDRIA’S WORK

Explainer: Puerto Rico Status Act 🇵🇷

Puerto Rico’s current status as an unincorporated territory of the U.S.
limits the island’s full political, economic, and social development. 

First, a little background…

The U.S. has controlled Puerto Rico since 1898, after defeating Spain in
the Spanish-American War, but Puerto Ricans did not become American
citizens until 1917. 

They can be drafted into the military, pay payroll taxes, and help fund
programs like Medicaid and SNAP, but Puerto Ricans are unable to vote for
president, do not have a voting representative in Congress, and have
almost no access to federal safety net programs, even though more than 40%
of the island lives in poverty. 

While many Puerto Ricans agree that they would like more say over the
status of the island’s relationship to the U.S., the reality is that which
kind of status – whether that’s statehood, independence, or sovereignty in
free association with the U.S. – is a controversial topic amongst its
residents.

That’s where the Puerto Rico Status Act comes in… 

Alexandria has prioritized developing a transparent, inclusive process for
Puerto Ricans to choose how to move forward with their relationship to the
U.S., which is why she was proud to co-sponsor the Puerto Rico
Self-Determination Act alongside Rep. Nydia Velazquez in March 2021. Key
elements of that bill were incorporated into the Puerto Rico Status Act,
including:

👉🏼 A binding plebiscite. Puerto Ricans have voted for changes in status in
the past, but all were non-binding resolutions, and saw no real changes to
the island’s relationship to the U.S. The PR Status Act would ensure
implementation of the status voted on by the majority (51%) of Puerto
Rico’s population.

👉🏼 Federally funded, objective educational materials about ALL THREE
status options will be shared in advance of the vote in both Spanish and
English, so that Puerto Ricans can fully assess their options for the
future.

👉🏼 Ends the option to continue the island’s current territorial status.
For the first time, Puerto Ricans will choose between three
non-territorial status options: statehood, independence, and sovereignty
with free association to the U.S. 

Other key victories in the bill include protections for Puerto Ricans from
being stripped of their U.S. citizenship – no matter the outcome of the
vote – and 10 years of financial assistance to the island if it chooses
independence. 

But this bill is just a first step.

While the Puerto Rico Status Act does not address other key factors
impacting Puerto Ricans' quality of life — including problems with the
energy grid, PROMESA, and Act 20 — it does represent a giant step forward
for bringing justice to the colonized people of Puerto Rico. 

We will stand with the organizers in Puerto Rico as they continue to
demand improvements for their community. Pa’lante! 🇵🇷

Alexandria is fighting for a powerful set of policies that will reshape
our economy, shrink inequality, and reverse the effects of climate change.
And we’re not stopping there ⁠— our platform calls for federal limits on
rent increases, transformative criminal justice reform, and Medicare for
All.

Our campaign is 100% people-powered. In fact, we are the #1 small-dollar
funded campaign in Congress. [ [link removed] ]If you can, please consider making a
donation today to keep Alexandria fighting for our agenda in Congress.

[ [link removed] ]Contribute

 


 

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