The opinions expressed here are solely the author's and do not reflect the opinions or beliefs of the LA Progressive.
After the racist joke at a Trump rally in which comedian Tony Hinchcliffe referred to Puerto Rico as a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean, suddenly, a surprising flood of apologies from the Trump campaign emerged. Hispanic Republicans became the face of the Republican Party affirming us, Puerto Ricans, this is not how the Trump campaign thinks of Puerto Rico.
The reality is that apologies did not prevent me from battling with memories of that traumatic response of Donald J. Trump when he insulted Puerto Ricans while being at their most vulnerable moment in recent history after Hurricane Maria devastation minimizing our death toll and calling us poor and dirty.
Adding insult to injury, when searching for the Republican Party platform on Puerto Rico, there was only one sentence. In other terms, there was silence, an absence, there were no meaningful plans for Puerto Rico. How was it that in the absence of a plan, there were insults for Puerto Rico, I wondered.
I know this is Democrats' opportunity to advocate for the inclusion of Puerto Ricans to the American project, to rally the Puerto Rican vote, and to show how much they respect Puerto Rico. However, I would caution Democrats from following this path with no meaningful action to change our colonial status which is at the root of many, if not all, our problems.
Our colonial status is the cause of Puerto Rico’s financial crisis that has created dependency on federal funds and an underdeveloped economy. Democrats have been part of the problem all along when signing PROMESA in 2016. This law has nothing to promise us but bringing austerity measures to our Island with implications such as the closing of schools, the profit of American healthcare industry at the expense of exploiting Puerto Rican doctors, and as a result, a healthcare professional shortage and a massive migration of our best and brightest.
PROMESA brought the Fiscal Control Board that governs in Puerto Rico by decree by putting energy distribution and generation at the hands of two American companies called LUMA and GENERA having as a result an intensification of an energy crisis impacting the poorest, the underserved sectors of the population and our business industry. It is under democrats and republicans that we are at the mercy of pharmaceuticals poisoning land and water increasing cancer rates of our people but getting tax incentives as a reward. Only our colonial status can allow such a debacle in our Island Nation and only the US Congress has the power to change it.
Standing by the Puerto Rican people is not only about calling out disgusting racist jokes from the Trump campaign but also talking about repealing PROMESA, eliminating the Fiscal Control Board, making meaningful steps to resolve the issue of status, and putting energy generation and distribution in the hands of the Puerto Rican people.
Standing by the Puerto Rican people implies not being afraid of talking about all status options--knowing not only statehood but free association and independence, because the Puerto Rican people know what their options are.
Standing by the Puerto Rican people implies working toward creating a sustainable economy that not only relies on federal funds, the monopoly of American companies, and a White House task force that avoids the root of our economic problems, which is our colonial condition.
Summarizing what I learned in less than 24 hours about our fate as a US colony is that Republicans will not be afraid to be blatantly racist against Puerto Ricans while Democrats will do nothing to change our colonial status--and with their inaction will perpetuate continued austerity measures for Puerto Rico. Which of the two approaches are more racist: being openly racist at a Trump rally or doing nothing to solve the status that subjugates our island nation?