La Mesa Boricua:
Talking Points Memo

Alianza for Progress is leading a call to action in our communities to tackle a public safety issue that has gone on far too long unabated — the dangerous and sometimes deadly street racing circuits that seduce our youth and take over our roadways at night.

In an Op-Ed in the Orlando Sentinel, Executive Director Marcos Vilar called on community organizations to join Alianza in addressing the issue. The potentially lethal nature of street racing was brought to the fore last month, when an out-of-control racer collided with a passing SUV near the City of Kissimmee. The crash resulted in the death of an 11-year-old girl.

But the issue is nothing new. Indeed, as the pandemic has led to less traffic, more economic stress, and closed entertainment options, bored and financially strapped young people in states and cities across America seem more willing to risk their lives and those of others for the thrill of a race or a shot at a modest cash prize.

In Central Florida, Alianza will be working with high-profile allies, law enforcement, and elected officials to tackle the issue head-on.

Talking Points:

• Illegal street racing tears families apart. When accidents happen, both the racers and those injured see their lives altered forever. It is an unnecessary risk that needs to stop.
• The prevalence of this practice amongst our youth is a social ill- spread by the lack of economic opportunity and the cheapening of the value of life. It must be treated as such.
• There is much we can potentially learn from other cities, counties and states, currently facing this same problem. local elected officials have responded to a similar surge in this illegal activity last year with innovative solutions, from using technology to detect drag race gatherings before they start to opening “burn-out parks” so aficionados can race safely in a controlled environment. We are not alone in finding a solution and there is no need to re-invent the wheel.

The past few weeks have seen a string of highly qualified boricuas named to important advocacy, law and policy roles within the federal government and prestigious advocacy organizations in our nation’s capital. Perhaps the most historically charged announcement was relating to the open seat in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, in Boston, which hears cases appealed from District Court in Puerto Rico. President Joe Biden is nominating Gustavo Gelpí, the chief judge of that District Court, for promotion to the appellate circuit. Gelpí would take the seat previously held by Juan Torruella, a Puerto Rico-born giant of the legal profession, who passed away in 2020.

Gelpí is by no means the only Puerto Rican plantando bandera when it comes to the highest echelons of policy and law. Dr. Frances Colón, a distinguished diplomat-scientist who served inside both the State Department and the White House under President Obama, was named senior director for international climate affairs at the Center for American Progress, a heavyweight progressive think-tank that serves as an intellectual firepower for the Biden administration.

Talking Points:

• Representation is key, and having diverse appointments of highly-qualified Puerto Ricans that give us representation in the halls of power is how we can make change. Personnel is policy.
• It’s fitting that Puerto Ricans are taking control and leading the way in areas of policy and law that will deeply affect our island, including the interpretation of citizenship rights and international climate policy. We are our own best advocates.
• The Biden administration, which made it to the White House on promises made to Puerto Rican voters, has so far placed some Puerto Ricans in key positions. More representation in areas of economic development, in the Pentagon, and dealing with healthcare and social services, is still needed.

A rash of gruesome and well-publicized murders of Puerto Rican women by their domestic partners is forcing a long-overdue conversation on the crisis of gender-based violence the island faces. The conversations on the topic are urgent, and not uncontroversial, across the political, religious and civil society forums in Puerto Rico. 

Attention has particularly been focused on the issue after a well-known professional boxer was arrested by federal authorities, accused of kidnapping, drugging, torturing and murdering his girlfriend and their unborn child, Keishla Rodriguez. Another killing, of a woman found burned to death in a vehicle who had recently been denied a protective order against her domestic abuser, also caused outrage.

The lurid, sensational details of both murders have made them non-stop front-page news, but those are sadly far from the only headlines. Violence against women at the hands of their domestic partners has seen a dramatic spike in Puerto Rico since 2017. Gender-related killings have more than doubled since then to around 60 per year, as reported instances of domestic violence have also exploded. Both the prior administration’s response to the violence, as well as proposals seeking to make gender equality ideals part of the public school education curriculum were a big deal during the 2020 gubernatorial race. As one of his first acts in office, new Governor Pedro Pierluisi declared a (mostly symbolic for the moment) state of emergency around gender-based violence. 

Gender-based violence, on a proportional basis, is an even more pronounced threat for trans women on the island. 12 trans women have been murdered in Puerto Rico as part of targeted killings in the past two years, for a violence rate that’s fifteen times the national average.

Alianza Center is partnering with Nuevo Sendero, an organization dedicated to providing education and prevention against domestic violence and sexual abuse, to raise support and awareness against the tragedies occurring to our women. Alianza, Nuevo Sendero and a handful of orgs and community leaders united at Lake Eola this past week in Downtown Orlando for a peaceful demonstration: ¡Unete! Justicia para todas.

Talking Points:

• Puerto Rico broke ground decades ago with progressive legislation to protect against domestic abusers. But years of not prioritizing the issue have left the island lacking.
• Domestic violence is influenced by wider factors around the economy, general quality of life, availability of mental health and counseling services. It is not a problem of individuals, but a society-wide issue.
• We must strive not just to help victims in their suffering, but change the violence paradigm completely to stop abuse before it occurs.

A Wall Street credit rating agency threw a bucket of cold water this month on predictions that Congress might soon act to grant Puerto Rico statehood, as efforts by pro-statehood members of Congress appear to be losing political ground to a competing proposal on how to resolve the colonial status quo.

Fitch Ratings, which studies a wide range of political issues worldwide as part of its mission to provide investors guidance on the creditworthiness of government debt, wrote in a report that “staunch opposition from the Republican Party” was the biggest factor that made it unlikely Puerto Rico would be admitted as a U.S. state any time soon. The report delved into the competing bills making their ways through Congress that seek to solve the status quo showed “there was lack of consensus on the issue within Puerto Rico.” The report also panned the possibility of Puerto Ricans eventually choosing to be independent of the United States, while noting that option had seen a recent uptick in support. None of that is news to those plugged in to politics in the island, but is notable as it will guide investors of government debt.

Wall Street investors of government debt are somewhat wary of what statehood could mean for the island’s ability to not pay obligations, as well as the tax-exempt nature of certain securities.

Talking points:

• “We are at a crucial moment in deciding the future for our homeland. But only a process that allows for the participation of Puerto Ricans from diverse ideologies can bring us together towards a workable solution.”
• “Congress is paying attention. Wall Street is paying attention. Several options are on the table. It’s time to act.”
• “Resolving the status is not an easy left-right issue and should not be framed that way by those who think they can give it a partisan bend”.

The Port of Jacksonville and Puerto Rico’s Port Authority signed an agreement this month formalizing an even closer relationship, as the Jones Act that makes that relationship necessary is back in the news. 

As part of a memorandum of understanding to be signed between Jaxport and the Puerto Rico Ports Authority, the two ports will work together on marketing plans and in going after federal funding for capital projects. The 10-year agreement will see the two authorities share information, trade data and business development issues to grow the trade between 

At least 85% of all goods shipped to Puerto Rico come from the Port of Jacksonville, with more than half of Jaxport’s container volumes going to the U.S. territory. Jacksonville shippers, aided by an Act of Congress that mandates all goods sent to Puerto Rico must arrive in American vessels, have long monopolized the sea trade, which results in higher prices of consumer goods for Puerto Ricans on the island. 

While there have been pressure campaigns and it is a top issue for some, there has been little progress made in modifying or repealing the Jones Act. A disruption in the gas distribution system is bringing the issue to the fore once again.

Talking Points:

• As various aspects of the colonial condition of Puerto Rico are being analyzed by Congress, the way the Jones Act creates an economic hardship on the island must be on the table.
• While individual Jones Act waivers are currently being granted to address a bottleneck in energy distribution, the White House and Congress must consider how the outdated law affects those who face the worst of its effects every day, Puerto Rican consumers.

Boricua advocates in Manhattan are sounding the alarm about the future of “el Centro” – the legendary Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College that serves as the unofficial intellectual repository and historical record of the Puerto Rican diaspora in New York.

A recent protest highlighted how a decade of disproportionate funding cuts and disinvestment from el Centro by CUNY has weakened the institution. The research institute currently operates without a chief librarian, meaning it risks falling behind in terms of gathering important information.

El Centro is a unique and beloved institution by Puerto Rican historians and academics, an exhaustive library that contains records about the diaspora experience not found anywhere else. Hunter College, the honors public university that houses the institution told NY1 after the recent protest that it is committed to the library, recently appointed an interim director and is looking to fill other vacancies. Advocates say public pressure is needed to get the university to follow through.

Talking Points:

• “El Centro is a de facto heritage site for our diaspora community in New York. It must be protected and properly funded.”
• “At a time of demographic and political change for our people, we must have a place that we can turn to when we need to answer the basic questions: Who are we? Where did we come from? How did we get here? An institution like El Centro is key to that.”
• “We welcome Yarimar Bonilla, who has been named Interim Director of El Centro, to build on the legacy of Edwin Meléndez. We trust she will advance Centro’s mission in support of scholarship and engagement on issues vital to Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rican diaspora.”