173 thoughts on “What are race relations like among Puerto Ricans on the island and in the U.S.?”
I recently went to Puerto Rico for the first time. I was proud to finally visit the island where my maternal grandfather came from. I noticed the difference when I went to el parque de las cavernas del rio camuy for a tour. No one wanted to sit next to me in the trolley but then realized they had no choice. No one was rude to me per se but I felt that because I was negrito people were definitely standoffish. It was like I had to prove I belong.
Victor,
Please excuse me when I say that had to be about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.
I am not latina, however I reside and grew up in the Bronx and I will say that my experience with most Puerto Ricans has been one whereby they deny their African Heritage. I was not shocked by this because of course many black americans attempt to do the same thing. What is shocking however is that many Americans of Puerto Rican descent are not even aware of the fact that they are not so different from African Americans after all we too are a mixture of the indeginious peoples, white european slave owners and the african slaves. Which is why many Latinas confuse me to be of Latina Descent when I am 100% Black American. The reality is that racism exists where ever slavery existed. And as for Victor, that is the most ignorant thing to say because Victor unless you are from an Island or country whereby slavery never existed the reality is the culture, language and religions of the African Slaves influenced the every land they inhabited. I would encourage all Puerto Ricans to know their full history; however I would encourage the darker skinned Puerto Ricans to know that some of the most famous Puerto Ricans were of African Descent, Rafael Cordero and Arturo Alfonso Schomberg…as in the Schomberg Center in Harlem. All Puerto Ricans should embrace their heritage and understand that they have alot in common with Black Americans. Our history is similar…our language is different.
I applied to University of Puerto Rico Recinto de Ciencias Medicas and never received a reply-in 1980- it was back when when you had to staple your picture to the application- I will always wonder what happened to my paperwork- Did someone have a problem with my color ??
I found better treatment here in Florida than in my “beloved” island
I call myself american now with puerto rican “roots”– I will never go back to Puerto Rico- I always felt people had no problem in singling you out for being dark — even if they did it in a nice way– we are our worst
enemies – we discriminate against ourselves– why should we get mad when here in the US we suffer discrimination? it is best to better oneself
through education and then move the hell out of the island- you will never
be treated fairly by the white elite in control of politics and the money there. and just live frustrated like the people I see when I visit there.
everyone is scared to death of going out at night and just relaxing. The national passtime in puerto rico is eating… drinking rum… and talking
stupid politics
I am 100% Dominican, and my boyfriend is Newyorican. For some reason, my boyfriend having white Puertorrican features appears at timeto be a racist (even though I think he acts black). We went to a restaurant, and he said to me “the food here is good, but there are too many black people”. He went onward to say a racist remark. I myself am una mulata Dominicana. In white corpororate America people say that I look interracial, technically this is what I am, but enough of the mombo jumbo, I am purely Latina/Dominicana, having both African and European descent. To the white men, I look black, and to the rest of the population, I look interracial. I sometimes feel that because of my ancestral African roots, some latinos feel that I am not as latino as they are. I sometimes I feel that I need to prove myself.
Sometimes I wonder why my boyfriend has not married me. It could be that he loves me, but can I be too dark for him? I left something out, it could be the fact that I don’t know how to cook. Oh well, that is a total different story! Even being Dominican, I far have been embraced more by my puertorrican sisters. I once tried finding me a latino brother in corporate America, which you know, are those that are college educated, dress well and can afford a house. After my journey of looking, I experienced what no one NEVER said to me “every lationo man in corporate America wants a white girl. Yups, I did finally experience it. I got back to back rejection from each and every one of them. I believe that it has a lot to do with “mejorando la raza”. Since they are already in the middle class, they want to marry white girls, who will give them status. How sad!
I myself am also prejudice in my own sense. I tend to go for Hispanics with more European features. I would never date a black one, since I already feel that I am alaredy Morena. Blame it all to my mother who engraved in me to better the race. I hope that my PR boyfriend marries me, if not, I’ll find another PR man. Not to be steryotypical, but by the age of 30, PR men already have 5 kids. I am already 31, so who knows that steps I need to take to further my journey. Any suggestions?
By the way, I went to PR once and all I saw was a whole bunch of tourists. I don’t know if I was in a segregated part of town, but everyone appeared white. I also went on a journey in trying to find a salon to cater to my ‘pelo malo’ hair, and I wasn’t able to find one. Honestly speaking, I though that being in San Juan was almost the same as being in Miami, except people in Miami are a lot warmer. Maybe I need to go to the towns of Fajardo or Loiza, where they have brown people just like me.
We were looking for places to go eat and asked the concierge at our hotel for directions. She told us that we shouldn’t eat at this restaurant in San Juan. Me and my friend passed by under way to another restaurant, and we found out that it was owned by dark skins Dominicans. El racismo esta en toda la parte!
I’m peurtrican
THE CLASSIFICATION OF AMERICANS BY RACE AND ETHNICITY MUST END
The Racial and Ethnic classification of Americans is nothing more than institutionalized racism and must be ended. The United States of America has been known as a country of rugged individualism based on individual freedom and liberty. Why has America become a country obsessed with classifying its citizens into different racial and ethnic sub-groups?
The only groups that actively support the continued collection of racial and ethnic data are big government bureaucrats and “racial and ethnic special interest groups” that also happen to receive significant funding from the federal government. These organizations argue that identifying people by race and ethnicity is necessary in order to redress some past injustice and that the federal government must continue to collect and use this information in order to set up special racial and ethnic programs, affirmative action quotas and other set-asides for these groups, some of whom consist of new immigrants, illegal aliens and non-citizens. Nothing can be further from the truth. In a country where we can no longer ask people what religion they are, what their party affiliation is or what their sexual orientation is, why are we still asking them about their racial and ethnic background?
Americans are beginning to realize that racial and ethnic identification is more a matter of personal choice than anything else. In the 2000 Census, seven million American citizens refused to place themselves into a single category by refusing to describe themselves as only white, black, Asian, Latino or any one of the other specific categories listed, because they were of mixed race. Attempts by the government to create a “mixed race” box for the 2000 Census was met with resistance by racial and ethnic special interest groups like the NAACP and the National Council of La Raza, because they feared that a mixed-race box could pose a danger to the justification for their existence. The fuzzier such racial and ethnic categories become, the harder it will be for these racial and ethnic special interest groups and the government to traffic in them. If a mixed-race category were to be added, every brown-skinned person of mixed race registered in this category would shrink the government’s official count of Blacks, Latinos, Asians or American Indians, eventually reducing their political influence and ultimately the amount of money these groups receive from the federal government, which amounts to approximately $185 billion a year.
Through the mandated collection and use of racial and ethnic specific information, more and more of American taxpayers’ hard earned money is being routinely distributed to these racial and ethnic special interest groups at the expense of all other Americans who may or may not be members of these groups. Through executive orders, congressional legislation, affirmative action programs, racial set-asides, quotas and other programs based solely on race and ethnicity, our federal government is playing the key role that pits one racial and ethnic group against another, which could eventually lead to our destruction as a country.
Rather than helping a diverse population become assimilated and united as one nation, the Federal government is doing what the Nazi government of Germany did in the 1930’s and 40’s; creating government supported institutionalized racism by the intentional classification of it’s citizens by race and ethnicity.
With the support of racial and ethnic special interest groups, our federal government seems to view our citizens not just as Americans, but rather as “pawns” in some social science experiment to be classified and separated into different racial or ethnic sub-groups for some unknown purpose. By mandating the classification of Americans into specific racial and ethnic sub-groups, the federal government and the advocates of “diversity” are actually perpetuating institutionalized racism and keeping Americans divided. Maybe the real purpose of collecting this data is to justify the continuing flow of government money to these racial and ethnic special interest groups.
If we want to help poor Americans escape poverty, get better health care, find a job or get a good education, why should it matter what their race or ethnic background is? The answer is: It should not! Americans need to come together as members of one country and remember that we are all individual Americans, regardless of race or ethnic background. Martin Luther King, Jr., inspired a nation when he voiced his dream for a color-blind nation, a nation in which people would be judged by the content of their characters, “not the color of their skin.” The answer to this government encouraged racism is the concept of Liberty with a limited, constitutional government that is devoted to the protection of individual rights rather than the claims of different racial and ethnic special interest groups. Where Liberty is present, individual achievement and competence are rewarded, not people’s skin color or ethnicity.
I will support legislation barring the federal government from the collection of racial and ethnic information about the American people and/or the classification of American citizens by race and ethnicity, including the collection of census information. Exceptions should be made for law enforcement, hospitals and medical research purposes.
I will also support legislation that bans affirmative action programs, racial set-asides, quotas and any other programs that give special preferences based on race and ethnicity.
Racism in Puert Rico is existent as rice and beans.Class divisions and a
make believe “nothing is wrong”mentality has eroded the fabric of our society to the extent that it seems normal not to explore these facts.
Media control has kept our island lingering on dormant unrealities on its
purest form.Are we ready to break free?
This is for Maria from Santo Domingo,your “niuyorican”boyfriend padece de S.A.F.A. (Sindrome de Anglo Fascismo Adquirido),very common among some
boricuas,bowicuas,well que se yo.It does not surprise me his attitude,and
identity crisis.I call it “Complejo de inferioridad cultural”,and a profound lack of understanding about race,culture and true identity.The belief that we boricuas are the chosen ones among latinos because of our political relations with the United States makes us feel fullfilled with arrogance.We hit the wall of reality after we find out that we are no chosen ones,and surprise,now we are angry,we do not speak spanish,we do not know what to do but to peel through the layers of uncertainty and along the way we act black but conduct ourselves improperly racist according to the given situation.Yes Maria,it is a sad situation,it is absurd,not funny at all but me myself,I use humour to adress these issues.I am a self critique of these amazing things.I do not wave large flags and sream”Wepa,soy boricua”.My flag is just a little bit larger than a thumb nail,and I wear it with pride,but I am also attentive,and outspoken about our lingering emotions of stupidity,and defiance without merit.Learn your history,learn
the language,analize yourself when it comes to racial interrelations and when a full understanding is reached…then practice defiance because it has attained its highest merit because it has reached full circle in what it means to
be a Latino in all the sense of the word.Viva Quisqueya Maria,viva Quisqueya!
I am Puerto Rican stationed in Iraq right now. I am 48 years old and I have been in the Military Service for over 21 years and retired many years ago. I am a civilian worker here. I’m not black nor I’m white but 100% of the people here were I work look at me and think that I’m Iraqis every time I go to eat in the Dinning Hall and I ask for Ham the worker who are from India ask me are you sure because they think I’m from India.. Now hear me out my brothers Cubans, Domicans, Puerto Rican’s we are Taino’s Indians we are mix with white Spanish, Africans. What a wonderful MIX of blood. Because of that mix, we have the most beautiful woman’s in the world. I have a son he is white and I have a daughter she is black I love them both. As for the Mexicans and the rest of the Latin world, we are connected in some form or another. I will gave my life to all of you. Respect and you will get your respect back.
esto va para cotorrita hubieron muchos puertoriquenos k mintieron en el census y dijeron k eran blancos esto lo supe por un amigo k trabajo en los census el dijo k muchos mas negro k el pusieron como blancos en el census por k decir k uno es negro en puerto rico es un pecado pero es mentira k el 80% de la poblacion es blanca puerto rico esta igual de ligado k cuba y republica dominicana
Mi madre tenia la piel canela y los ojos negros
de las cuales tantas canciones se escriben
con muy buena razon.
Y yo, que naci con los hojos verdes y pelo rubio de mi padre,
boriqua tambien,
siempre queria verme como mi madre, obscura y sensual.
Mis hermanas, triguenas del pelo lasio y negro,
se reian de mi pelo “malo” y decian que yo era hija de un negro grande
que recojia basura en la vecindad.
Me facinaba la piel color de rico cafe con leche
y mi primer marido era un indio mexicano.
Mis hijos tienes sus ojos y sonrisa y son color de caramelos
y asi de dulces.
Mi ultimo amor, es un hombre fuerte con una sonrisa como el sol y
la piel que refleja su abuela Haitiana. Es el hombre mas trabajador
leal y amoroso que he conocido. Mi madre, quien le decia a mi papa, “negrito” con mucho amor, no queria a mi marido por su color, pensando que su hija, una “tremenda rubia” se merecia un hombre blanco de pesos, no obstante que le decia que me aburrian horriblemente. Mi padre, el blanco, lo queria mucho por su buen caracter. Tengo sobrinas y primos indios, negro americanos, chinos, blancos y de todos los colores entre medio, y nos queremos muchisimo. Hemos aceptado a todas las razas y culturas en nuestra familia sin prejuicio alguno. Si, habia racismo en PR, pero se va desapareciendo con el tiempo y el amor. Viva la libertad!
Que Viva la LIBERTAD! como expresa quien antesede a mi comentario. En estos momentos se levanta una voz que dice, “Vivamos con igualdad, no importa el color, nacionalidad ni credo”
Buscamos personas como TU, que nos ayude a que podamos tener un Puerto Rico sin Barreras. Nuestro telefono es: (787) 550-0655
All of the above, the euphenism of “eres triguena” is because we can’t bring ourselves to admikt that there is black in our veins. It was not until I moved to ethe mainland that I saw how backwards we were regarding race. PR’s are racist, my husband used to tell me that, and I used to argue about it. It was not until I left the island, that I realized how racist a society we are. There has never been a “blasck” gobvernor, you go to any place and you don’t see a black server, black dr’s, black nurses, they are exrremely ppor, schools in their areas are atrocious, and if you can”pass” you DO!!!! So please, do not tell me that we are a mix race, I am white and I can see it with myh own eyes every day. Where are the BLACKS in PR, they are NO WHERE TO BE SSEn and hidden.
Me pueden decir de cuando aca marron es negro o brown is black
I was born in Puerto Rico and like many of us I’m triracial. My view is that there is a form of racism in Puerto Rico and always has been. However it is not as violent as the racism I’ve seen in the USA. No crosses were ever burnt nor was ever a black man hanged because he courted a white woman. My great grandfather was a blackman who married by the church a blond blue eyed Spaniard. Yes she was snubbed but that was as bad as it got. this was in the 1900s , try that in the USA. Yes some people need to reevaluate their racsist attitudes and there is always room for growth. But please don’t make it seem as if we as a people are far above anybody else in our imperfections. As to the word trigueno. It’s original purpose was for people of brown, tan or copper complexions irregardless of African ancestry or not. Later on when some Blacks in Puerto Rico showed displeasure at being called Black because of internalised insecurities, others began to call them trigueno for fear of offending them.
We are more alike than we are different………………………. Im a black american whos paternal grandfather is from Spain, I have a spanish surname and it confuses the hell out of people when I tell them, Im not Puerto Rican, Dominican, Cuban, Brazilian or anything else of that matter I have both white and Choctaw Indian ancestry, people are often shocked when I say that Im black they ask me how or why……….are they serious sadly they are………… I find it that alot of Americans have similar backgrounds. All black people in the United States dont have the same ancestral backgrounds there are many variations, People it is what is. We all have a common starting point somewhere along the line, be comfortable with who you are you cant let others define you. Anyone anywere born in the past hundred years or so is not 100 percent anything. Genetics are a funny thing its like a box of chocolates you never know what your gonna get! Everyone has some type of racial problem some nations are just more blatant than others………
Why is it that Black Puerto Ricans keep on insisting that all Puerto Ricans have Black Blood in them. Ihave been hearing this all my life everytime i meet Puerto Ricans with Black Blood and i am 58 years old. But meeting all my Uncles Aunts Cousins all my Grandparents i have never seen any Black Puerto Ricans. For those skeptical of this look up The Royal Decree of Graces. This occured in 1815 in Puerto Rico, basicly it granted free land to Europeans other than Spaniards to come to Puerto Rico under certain provisions. First they had to swear allegeance to Spain,plus they had to be Catholic and live for 7 years or so. As a result of this Decree hundreds of thousands came to Puerto Rico from Corsica, Germany, France, Scotland. Irerland, also Portugeese, plus more Spaniards as well as others to numerous to mention. Now to close most of them were already married, the Irish Man had an Irish Wife, the German Man had a German Wife with German children and so on. Now how could they have had Taino or African in them. When they first started arriving in Puerto Rico the population of the Island was 155,000 and by the the Americans took control the population ballooned to over 950,000. Much of this huge population growth was due to the immigration of massive Europeans to the Island. This is why so many of the Miss Universe winners of Puerto Rico look so European because they were. I looked up Aguadilla and Moca where my family was from and today it is 93%white. The Europeans tended to favor the western part of Puerto Rico from what i have researched. Please my fellow do not think i am rejecting the influence of the thousnds of contributions of the Taino or African cultures, i am merely trying to open peoples Eyes to the truth. Viva la differencia.
I have heard people tell me they visited PR and experienced racism or lack of respect from people, I have only heard this from brown or black skinned people. No white latinos have said they experienced this, I wonder why.
Racism is an illness of the Soul and mind. It is something that is taught. Cuba, Santo Domingo, Haiti, Jamaica and Puerto Rico, suffered the horrors of slavery, as did most of the countries of the Americas. Everywhere that this happend you have some form of internalized racism between the the people of color. The USA is not free from this imperfection also. But I find people who often write about this being guilty if not of racism then of prejudice. I’m Puerto Rican I lived there for years. There are about 4 million Boricuas on the island yet in my whole life I may only have interacted with less then a hundred or two. Yet we think we can judge millions of people based on the harsh treatment we recieved by a few. I can not speak about any race,nation etc. in general terms to do so really only shows the world our own prejudices and maybe even our own internalized racist attitudes.
Well i know the truth – puerto rico is racist. but so is dominican republic and the rest of those third world colonies. i say colonies because even though they are independent, they swear allegiance to the white man.
i was in puerto rico back in july and i couldnt help notice how white the middle class actually is. all the darkies (like me)? living in caserios or of course, in prison.
that place is such a joke that after a while i began to wonder if this poor little island is better off being a state. they could sure that status – maybe then it’ll be a lot less racist and ignorant?
I recently went to Puerto Rico for the first time. I was proud to finally visit the island where my maternal grandfather came from. I noticed the difference when I went to el parque de las cavernas del rio camuy for a tour. No one wanted to sit next to me in the trolley but then realized they had no choice. No one was rude to me per se but I felt that because I was negrito people were definitely standoffish. It was like I had to prove I belong.
Victor,
Please excuse me when I say that had to be about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.
I am not latina, however I reside and grew up in the Bronx and I will say that my experience with most Puerto Ricans has been one whereby they deny their African Heritage. I was not shocked by this because of course many black americans attempt to do the same thing. What is shocking however is that many Americans of Puerto Rican descent are not even aware of the fact that they are not so different from African Americans after all we too are a mixture of the indeginious peoples, white european slave owners and the african slaves. Which is why many Latinas confuse me to be of Latina Descent when I am 100% Black American. The reality is that racism exists where ever slavery existed. And as for Victor, that is the most ignorant thing to say because Victor unless you are from an Island or country whereby slavery never existed the reality is the culture, language and religions of the African Slaves influenced the every land they inhabited. I would encourage all Puerto Ricans to know their full history; however I would encourage the darker skinned Puerto Ricans to know that some of the most famous Puerto Ricans were of African Descent, Rafael Cordero and Arturo Alfonso Schomberg…as in the Schomberg Center in Harlem. All Puerto Ricans should embrace their heritage and understand that they have alot in common with Black Americans. Our history is similar…our language is different.
I applied to University of Puerto Rico Recinto de Ciencias Medicas and never received a reply-in 1980- it was back when when you had to staple your picture to the application- I will always wonder what happened to my paperwork- Did someone have a problem with my color ??
I found better treatment here in Florida than in my “beloved” island
I call myself american now with puerto rican “roots”– I will never go back to Puerto Rico- I always felt people had no problem in singling you out for being dark — even if they did it in a nice way– we are our worst
enemies – we discriminate against ourselves– why should we get mad when here in the US we suffer discrimination? it is best to better oneself
through education and then move the hell out of the island- you will never
be treated fairly by the white elite in control of politics and the money there. and just live frustrated like the people I see when I visit there.
everyone is scared to death of going out at night and just relaxing. The national passtime in puerto rico is eating… drinking rum… and talking
stupid politics
I am 100% Dominican, and my boyfriend is Newyorican. For some reason, my boyfriend having white Puertorrican features appears at timeto be a racist (even though I think he acts black). We went to a restaurant, and he said to me “the food here is good, but there are too many black people”. He went onward to say a racist remark. I myself am una mulata Dominicana. In white corpororate America people say that I look interracial, technically this is what I am, but enough of the mombo jumbo, I am purely Latina/Dominicana, having both African and European descent. To the white men, I look black, and to the rest of the population, I look interracial. I sometimes feel that because of my ancestral African roots, some latinos feel that I am not as latino as they are. I sometimes I feel that I need to prove myself.
Sometimes I wonder why my boyfriend has not married me. It could be that he loves me, but can I be too dark for him? I left something out, it could be the fact that I don’t know how to cook. Oh well, that is a total different story! Even being Dominican, I far have been embraced more by my puertorrican sisters. I once tried finding me a latino brother in corporate America, which you know, are those that are college educated, dress well and can afford a house. After my journey of looking, I experienced what no one NEVER said to me “every lationo man in corporate America wants a white girl. Yups, I did finally experience it. I got back to back rejection from each and every one of them. I believe that it has a lot to do with “mejorando la raza”. Since they are already in the middle class, they want to marry white girls, who will give them status. How sad!
I myself am also prejudice in my own sense. I tend to go for Hispanics with more European features. I would never date a black one, since I already feel that I am alaredy Morena. Blame it all to my mother who engraved in me to better the race. I hope that my PR boyfriend marries me, if not, I’ll find another PR man. Not to be steryotypical, but by the age of 30, PR men already have 5 kids. I am already 31, so who knows that steps I need to take to further my journey. Any suggestions?
By the way, I went to PR once and all I saw was a whole bunch of tourists. I don’t know if I was in a segregated part of town, but everyone appeared white. I also went on a journey in trying to find a salon to cater to my ‘pelo malo’ hair, and I wasn’t able to find one. Honestly speaking, I though that being in San Juan was almost the same as being in Miami, except people in Miami are a lot warmer. Maybe I need to go to the towns of Fajardo or Loiza, where they have brown people just like me.
We were looking for places to go eat and asked the concierge at our hotel for directions. She told us that we shouldn’t eat at this restaurant in San Juan. Me and my friend passed by under way to another restaurant, and we found out that it was owned by dark skins Dominicans. El racismo esta en toda la parte!
I’m peurtrican
THE CLASSIFICATION OF AMERICANS BY RACE AND ETHNICITY MUST END
The Racial and Ethnic classification of Americans is nothing more than institutionalized racism and must be ended. The United States of America has been known as a country of rugged individualism based on individual freedom and liberty. Why has America become a country obsessed with classifying its citizens into different racial and ethnic sub-groups?
The only groups that actively support the continued collection of racial and ethnic data are big government bureaucrats and “racial and ethnic special interest groups” that also happen to receive significant funding from the federal government. These organizations argue that identifying people by race and ethnicity is necessary in order to redress some past injustice and that the federal government must continue to collect and use this information in order to set up special racial and ethnic programs, affirmative action quotas and other set-asides for these groups, some of whom consist of new immigrants, illegal aliens and non-citizens. Nothing can be further from the truth. In a country where we can no longer ask people what religion they are, what their party affiliation is or what their sexual orientation is, why are we still asking them about their racial and ethnic background?
Americans are beginning to realize that racial and ethnic identification is more a matter of personal choice than anything else. In the 2000 Census, seven million American citizens refused to place themselves into a single category by refusing to describe themselves as only white, black, Asian, Latino or any one of the other specific categories listed, because they were of mixed race. Attempts by the government to create a “mixed race” box for the 2000 Census was met with resistance by racial and ethnic special interest groups like the NAACP and the National Council of La Raza, because they feared that a mixed-race box could pose a danger to the justification for their existence. The fuzzier such racial and ethnic categories become, the harder it will be for these racial and ethnic special interest groups and the government to traffic in them. If a mixed-race category were to be added, every brown-skinned person of mixed race registered in this category would shrink the government’s official count of Blacks, Latinos, Asians or American Indians, eventually reducing their political influence and ultimately the amount of money these groups receive from the federal government, which amounts to approximately $185 billion a year.
Through the mandated collection and use of racial and ethnic specific information, more and more of American taxpayers’ hard earned money is being routinely distributed to these racial and ethnic special interest groups at the expense of all other Americans who may or may not be members of these groups. Through executive orders, congressional legislation, affirmative action programs, racial set-asides, quotas and other programs based solely on race and ethnicity, our federal government is playing the key role that pits one racial and ethnic group against another, which could eventually lead to our destruction as a country.
Rather than helping a diverse population become assimilated and united as one nation, the Federal government is doing what the Nazi government of Germany did in the 1930’s and 40’s; creating government supported institutionalized racism by the intentional classification of it’s citizens by race and ethnicity.
With the support of racial and ethnic special interest groups, our federal government seems to view our citizens not just as Americans, but rather as “pawns” in some social science experiment to be classified and separated into different racial or ethnic sub-groups for some unknown purpose. By mandating the classification of Americans into specific racial and ethnic sub-groups, the federal government and the advocates of “diversity” are actually perpetuating institutionalized racism and keeping Americans divided. Maybe the real purpose of collecting this data is to justify the continuing flow of government money to these racial and ethnic special interest groups.
If we want to help poor Americans escape poverty, get better health care, find a job or get a good education, why should it matter what their race or ethnic background is? The answer is: It should not! Americans need to come together as members of one country and remember that we are all individual Americans, regardless of race or ethnic background. Martin Luther King, Jr., inspired a nation when he voiced his dream for a color-blind nation, a nation in which people would be judged by the content of their characters, “not the color of their skin.” The answer to this government encouraged racism is the concept of Liberty with a limited, constitutional government that is devoted to the protection of individual rights rather than the claims of different racial and ethnic special interest groups. Where Liberty is present, individual achievement and competence are rewarded, not people’s skin color or ethnicity.
I will support legislation barring the federal government from the collection of racial and ethnic information about the American people and/or the classification of American citizens by race and ethnicity, including the collection of census information. Exceptions should be made for law enforcement, hospitals and medical research purposes.
I will also support legislation that bans affirmative action programs, racial set-asides, quotas and any other programs that give special preferences based on race and ethnicity.
By:
JOHN W. WALLACE
Candidate for Congress
New York’s 20th Congressional District
http://www.FreedomCandidate.com
Racism in Puert Rico is existent as rice and beans.Class divisions and a
make believe “nothing is wrong”mentality has eroded the fabric of our society to the extent that it seems normal not to explore these facts.
Media control has kept our island lingering on dormant unrealities on its
purest form.Are we ready to break free?
This is for Maria from Santo Domingo,your “niuyorican”boyfriend padece de S.A.F.A. (Sindrome de Anglo Fascismo Adquirido),very common among some
boricuas,bowicuas,well que se yo.It does not surprise me his attitude,and
identity crisis.I call it “Complejo de inferioridad cultural”,and a profound lack of understanding about race,culture and true identity.The belief that we boricuas are the chosen ones among latinos because of our political relations with the United States makes us feel fullfilled with arrogance.We hit the wall of reality after we find out that we are no chosen ones,and surprise,now we are angry,we do not speak spanish,we do not know what to do but to peel through the layers of uncertainty and along the way we act black but conduct ourselves improperly racist according to the given situation.Yes Maria,it is a sad situation,it is absurd,not funny at all but me myself,I use humour to adress these issues.I am a self critique of these amazing things.I do not wave large flags and sream”Wepa,soy boricua”.My flag is just a little bit larger than a thumb nail,and I wear it with pride,but I am also attentive,and outspoken about our lingering emotions of stupidity,and defiance without merit.Learn your history,learn
the language,analize yourself when it comes to racial interrelations and when a full understanding is reached…then practice defiance because it has attained its highest merit because it has reached full circle in what it means to
be a Latino in all the sense of the word.Viva Quisqueya Maria,viva Quisqueya!
I am Puerto Rican stationed in Iraq right now. I am 48 years old and I have been in the Military Service for over 21 years and retired many years ago. I am a civilian worker here. I’m not black nor I’m white but 100% of the people here were I work look at me and think that I’m Iraqis every time I go to eat in the Dinning Hall and I ask for Ham the worker who are from India ask me are you sure because they think I’m from India.. Now hear me out my brothers Cubans, Domicans, Puerto Rican’s we are Taino’s Indians we are mix with white Spanish, Africans. What a wonderful MIX of blood. Because of that mix, we have the most beautiful woman’s in the world. I have a son he is white and I have a daughter she is black I love them both. As for the Mexicans and the rest of the Latin world, we are connected in some form or another. I will gave my life to all of you. Respect and you will get your respect back.
esto va para cotorrita hubieron muchos puertoriquenos k mintieron en el census y dijeron k eran blancos esto lo supe por un amigo k trabajo en los census el dijo k muchos mas negro k el pusieron como blancos en el census por k decir k uno es negro en puerto rico es un pecado pero es mentira k el 80% de la poblacion es blanca puerto rico esta igual de ligado k cuba y republica dominicana
Mi madre tenia la piel canela y los ojos negros
de las cuales tantas canciones se escriben
con muy buena razon.
Y yo, que naci con los hojos verdes y pelo rubio de mi padre,
boriqua tambien,
siempre queria verme como mi madre, obscura y sensual.
Mis hermanas, triguenas del pelo lasio y negro,
se reian de mi pelo “malo” y decian que yo era hija de un negro grande
que recojia basura en la vecindad.
Me facinaba la piel color de rico cafe con leche
y mi primer marido era un indio mexicano.
Mis hijos tienes sus ojos y sonrisa y son color de caramelos
y asi de dulces.
Mi ultimo amor, es un hombre fuerte con una sonrisa como el sol y
la piel que refleja su abuela Haitiana. Es el hombre mas trabajador
leal y amoroso que he conocido. Mi madre, quien le decia a mi papa, “negrito” con mucho amor, no queria a mi marido por su color, pensando que su hija, una “tremenda rubia” se merecia un hombre blanco de pesos, no obstante que le decia que me aburrian horriblemente. Mi padre, el blanco, lo queria mucho por su buen caracter. Tengo sobrinas y primos indios, negro americanos, chinos, blancos y de todos los colores entre medio, y nos queremos muchisimo. Hemos aceptado a todas las razas y culturas en nuestra familia sin prejuicio alguno. Si, habia racismo en PR, pero se va desapareciendo con el tiempo y el amor. Viva la libertad!
Que Viva la LIBERTAD! como expresa quien antesede a mi comentario. En estos momentos se levanta una voz que dice, “Vivamos con igualdad, no importa el color, nacionalidad ni credo”
Buscamos personas como TU, que nos ayude a que podamos tener un Puerto Rico sin Barreras. Nuestro telefono es: (787) 550-0655
All of the above, the euphenism of “eres triguena” is because we can’t bring ourselves to admikt that there is black in our veins. It was not until I moved to ethe mainland that I saw how backwards we were regarding race. PR’s are racist, my husband used to tell me that, and I used to argue about it. It was not until I left the island, that I realized how racist a society we are. There has never been a “blasck” gobvernor, you go to any place and you don’t see a black server, black dr’s, black nurses, they are exrremely ppor, schools in their areas are atrocious, and if you can”pass” you DO!!!! So please, do not tell me that we are a mix race, I am white and I can see it with myh own eyes every day. Where are the BLACKS in PR, they are NO WHERE TO BE SSEn and hidden.
Me pueden decir de cuando aca marron es negro o brown is black
I was born in Puerto Rico and like many of us I’m triracial. My view is that there is a form of racism in Puerto Rico and always has been. However it is not as violent as the racism I’ve seen in the USA. No crosses were ever burnt nor was ever a black man hanged because he courted a white woman. My great grandfather was a blackman who married by the church a blond blue eyed Spaniard. Yes she was snubbed but that was as bad as it got. this was in the 1900s , try that in the USA. Yes some people need to reevaluate their racsist attitudes and there is always room for growth. But please don’t make it seem as if we as a people are far above anybody else in our imperfections. As to the word trigueno. It’s original purpose was for people of brown, tan or copper complexions irregardless of African ancestry or not. Later on when some Blacks in Puerto Rico showed displeasure at being called Black because of internalised insecurities, others began to call them trigueno for fear of offending them.
We are more alike than we are different………………………. Im a black american whos paternal grandfather is from Spain, I have a spanish surname and it confuses the hell out of people when I tell them, Im not Puerto Rican, Dominican, Cuban, Brazilian or anything else of that matter I have both white and Choctaw Indian ancestry, people are often shocked when I say that Im black they ask me how or why……….are they serious sadly they are………… I find it that alot of Americans have similar backgrounds. All black people in the United States dont have the same ancestral backgrounds there are many variations, People it is what is. We all have a common starting point somewhere along the line, be comfortable with who you are you cant let others define you. Anyone anywere born in the past hundred years or so is not 100 percent anything. Genetics are a funny thing its like a box of chocolates you never know what your gonna get! Everyone has some type of racial problem some nations are just more blatant than others………
Why is it that Black Puerto Ricans keep on insisting that all Puerto Ricans have Black Blood in them. Ihave been hearing this all my life everytime i meet Puerto Ricans with Black Blood and i am 58 years old. But meeting all my Uncles Aunts Cousins all my Grandparents i have never seen any Black Puerto Ricans. For those skeptical of this look up The Royal Decree of Graces. This occured in 1815 in Puerto Rico, basicly it granted free land to Europeans other than Spaniards to come to Puerto Rico under certain provisions. First they had to swear allegeance to Spain,plus they had to be Catholic and live for 7 years or so. As a result of this Decree hundreds of thousands came to Puerto Rico from Corsica, Germany, France, Scotland. Irerland, also Portugeese, plus more Spaniards as well as others to numerous to mention. Now to close most of them were already married, the Irish Man had an Irish Wife, the German Man had a German Wife with German children and so on. Now how could they have had Taino or African in them. When they first started arriving in Puerto Rico the population of the Island was 155,000 and by the the Americans took control the population ballooned to over 950,000. Much of this huge population growth was due to the immigration of massive Europeans to the Island. This is why so many of the Miss Universe winners of Puerto Rico look so European because they were. I looked up Aguadilla and Moca where my family was from and today it is 93%white. The Europeans tended to favor the western part of Puerto Rico from what i have researched. Please my fellow do not think i am rejecting the influence of the thousnds of contributions of the Taino or African cultures, i am merely trying to open peoples Eyes to the truth. Viva la differencia.
I have heard people tell me they visited PR and experienced racism or lack of respect from people, I have only heard this from brown or black skinned people. No white latinos have said they experienced this, I wonder why.
Racism is an illness of the Soul and mind. It is something that is taught. Cuba, Santo Domingo, Haiti, Jamaica and Puerto Rico, suffered the horrors of slavery, as did most of the countries of the Americas. Everywhere that this happend you have some form of internalized racism between the the people of color. The USA is not free from this imperfection also. But I find people who often write about this being guilty if not of racism then of prejudice. I’m Puerto Rican I lived there for years. There are about 4 million Boricuas on the island yet in my whole life I may only have interacted with less then a hundred or two. Yet we think we can judge millions of people based on the harsh treatment we recieved by a few. I can not speak about any race,nation etc. in general terms to do so really only shows the world our own prejudices and maybe even our own internalized racist attitudes.
Well i know the truth – puerto rico is racist. but so is dominican republic and the rest of those third world colonies. i say colonies because even though they are independent, they swear allegiance to the white man.
i was in puerto rico back in july and i couldnt help notice how white the middle class actually is. all the darkies (like me)? living in caserios or of course, in prison.
that place is such a joke that after a while i began to wonder if this poor little island is better off being a state. they could sure that status – maybe then it’ll be a lot less racist and ignorant?