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Puerto Rico



The Roman Catholic Church has been historically the dominant religion in Puerto Rico. The first dioceses in the Americas was erected in Puerto Rico in 1511.[64] All municipalities in Puerto Rico have at least one Catholic church (building), most of which are located at the town center or "plaza". Protestantism which was suppressed under the Spanish regime has been encouraged under American rule making modern Puerto Rico interconfessional. Taíno religious practices have been rediscovered/reinvented to a degree by a handful of advocates. Various African religious practices have been present since the arrival of African slaves. In particular, the Yoruba beliefs of Santeria and/or Ifá, and the Kongo-derived Palo Mayombe find adherence among a few individuals who practice some form of African traditional religion.

Migration to the United States

Puerto Ricans moved to the U.S. in hopes of a better life—particularly more employment and higher wages. Most moved to urban areas, particularly New York City, but also to cities such as Philadelphia, Chicago, Hartford, or Boston. In the 1920s, Puerto Rico still largely retained a rural, agricultural economy that began to decline in the era of growing industrialization and expanded capitalism in the U.S. Both men and women migrated. Families migrated with their children, but widowed women migrated with their children as well.[65]

Puerto Rican women, due to language barriers and racism, often received the lowest ranking jobs. Most Puerto Rican women acquired work in the food service or garment industries. In 1955, Puerto Rican skirtmakers in New York City produced 83 million items.[66] They worked long hours and received the lowest wages. Women who could not find work took jobs in the informal economy, helping to take care of other women’s children or helping with other women’s domestic chores.

By the 1950s, the Puerto Rican population in the U.S. had increased dramatically. Average yearly migration of Puerto Ricans to the U.S. was up to 1,800 from 191 in 1940 and increased to 45,000 between 1951 and 1960. Twenty percent of Puerto Rico’s population migrated to the U.S. in the 1950s.[67] By 1964, Puerto Ricans made up almost 10% of New York City’s population.[68] Today, more Puerto Rican descendants live in the continental U.S. than in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Ricans did not assimilate like other immigrant groups, and retained their culture and language.[69] U.S. policymakers believed Puerto Ricans were having too many children and that they had a poor work ethic. Women were seen as reproducing too much.[70] Because they did not stay in the home as women were expected to, Puerto Rican women were also considered inadequate mothers. Additionally, they were blamed for spreading immorality to their children and their larger community.[71]

Such ideas supported the sterilization of Puerto Rican women. Puerto Rico has a higher rate of female sterilization than any other country in the world, a phenomenon that also occurred in the U.S.[72] Beginning in the 1930s, U.S. officials declared an overpopulation of people in Puerto Rico. Instead of educating young women about contraceptives, doctors forced them to be sterilized. Many women had no idea that other options existed for them. The operations women were subjected to were often very dangerous and many women faced serious complications afterwards.[73]

Culture

Main article: Culture of Puerto Rico
Kapok tree (Ceiba), the national tree of Puerto Rico
Kapok tree (Ceiba), the national tree of Puerto Rico

Puerto Rican culture is a mix of four cultures, African (from the slaves), Taíno (Amerindians), Spanish, and more recently, North American. From Africans, the Puerto Ricans have obtained the "bomba and plena", a type of music and dance including percussions and maracas. From the Amerindians (Taínos), they kept many names for their municipalities, foods, musical instruments like the güiro and maracas. Many words and other objects have originated from their localized language. From the Spanish they received the Spanish language, the Catholic religion and the vast majority of their cultural and moral values and traditions. From the United States they received the English language, the university system and a variety of hybrid cultural forms that developed between the U.S. mainland and the island of Puerto Rico. The University of Puerto Rico was founded in 1903, five years after the island became part of the U.S.

Much of the Puerto Rican culture centers on the influence of music. Like the country as a whole, Puerto Rican music has been developed by mixing other cultures with its own unique flavor. Early in the history of Puerto Rican music, the influences of African and Spanish traditions were most noticeable. However, the cultural movements across the Caribbean and North America have played a vital role in the more recent musical influences that have reached Puerto Rico. [74][75]

The official symbols of Puerto Rico are the bird, Reinita mora (Spindalis portoricensis), the flower, Flor de Maga (Thespesia grandiflora), and the tree, Ceiba or Kapok (Ceiba pentandra). The unofficial animal and a symbol of Puerto Rican pride is the Coquí (Eleutherodactylus coqui). Other popular symbols of Puerto Rico are the "jíbaro" , the "countryman", and the carite.

See also: Cuisine of Puerto Rico

Sports

Main article: Sports in Puerto Rico
Further information: Association Football in Puerto Rico
Juan Evangelista Venegas, first Puerto Rican to win an Olympic medal
Juan Evangelista Venegas, first Puerto Rican to win an Olympic medal

Baseball is the most popular sport in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico has its own professional baseball league which operates as a winter league. No major league franchise or affiliate plays in Puerto Rico, however, San Juan hosted the Montreal Expos for several series in 2003 and 2004 before they moved to Washington, D.C. and became the Washington Nationals. Puerto Rico has participated in the World Cup of Baseball winning one gold (1951), four silver and four bronze medals and the Caribbean Series, winning fourteen times. Famous Puerto Rican baseball players include Roberto Clemente and Orlando Cepeda, enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973 and 1999, respectively.[76][77]

Boxing, basketball, and volleyball are considered popular sports as well. Puerto Rico has the third-most boxing world champions and its the global leader in champions per capita. These include Miguel Cotto, Félix Trinidad, Wilfred Benítez, and Wilfredo Gómez. Secondary sports include Professional wrestling, association football and road running. The World Wrestling Council and International Wrestling Association are the largest wrestling promotions in the main island. The Puerto Rico Islanders Football Club, founded in 2003, plays in the United Soccer Leagues First Division, which constitutes the second tier of football in North America. Puerto Rico is also a member of FIFA and CONCACAF. In 2008 the islands first unified league the Puerto Rico Soccer League was established.

Puerto Rico has representation in all international competitions including the Summer and Winter Olympics, the Pan American Games, the Caribbean World Series, and the Central American and Caribbean Games. Puerto Rican athletes have won 6 medals (1 silver, 5 bronze) in Olympic competition, the first one in 1948 by boxer Juan Evangelista Venegas. August 8, 2004, became a landmark date for the National Basketball Team when it defeated the United States in the 2004 Summer Olympics organized in Athens, Greece.[78] On March 2006 San Juan's Hiram Bithorn Stadium hosted the opening round as well as the second round of the newly formed World Baseball Classic.

Education

Main article: Education in Puerto Rico

Education in Puerto Rico is divided in three levels — Primary (elementary school grades 1-6), Secondary (intermediate and high school grades 7-12), and Higher Level (undergraduate and graduate studies). As of 2002, the literacy rate of the Puerto Rican population was 94.1%; by gender, it was 93.9% for males and 94.4% for females.[79] According to the 2000 Census, 60.0% of the population attained a high school degree or higher level of education, and 18.3% has a bachelor's degree or higher. This ranks as worst and 6th worst, respectively, among U.S. states, where the national averages are 80.4% and 24.4%.[80]

Instruction at the primary school level is compulsory between the ages of 5 and 18 and is enforced by the state. The Constitution of Puerto Rico grants the right to an education to every citizen on the island. To this end, public schools in Puerto Rico provide free and non-sectarian education at the elementary and secondary levels. At any of the three levels, students may attend either public or private schools. As of 1999, there were 1532 public schools[81] and 569 private schools in the island.[citation needed]

The largest and oldest university system in Puerto Rico is the public University of Puerto Rico (UPR) with 11 campus. The largest private university systems on the island are the Sistema Universitario Ana G. Mendez which operates the Universidad del Turabo, Metropolitan University and Universidad del Este, the multi-campus Inter American University, the Pontificial Catholic University, and the Universidad del Sagrado Corazón. Puerto Rico has four schools of Medicine and four Law Schools.

Transportation

Tren Urbano at Bayamón Station
Tren Urbano at Bayamón Station
Main article: Transportation in Puerto Rico

Cities and towns in Puerto Rico are interconnected by a system of roads, freeways, expressways, and highways maintained by the Highways and Transportation Authority and patrolled by the Police of Puerto Rico. The island's metropolitan area is served by a public bus transit system and a metro system called Tren Urbano (in English: Urban Train). Other forms of public transportation include sea-born ferries (that serve Puerto Rico's archipelago) as well as Carros Públicos (Mini Bus), similar to jitney service on the United States.

The island's main airport, Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, is located in Carolina and is a major hub in the Caribbean. The most recently renovated airport in the west of Puerto Rico is that of the former Ramey Military airbase in Aguadilla, Rafael Hernandez Airport, which has made it easier to explore the towns of the newly created tourism area known as "Porta del Sol." The main port of the island is San Juan Port.

See also

Puerto Rico Portal

Notes and references

  1. ^ Nancy Morris (1995), Puerto Rico: Culture, Politics, and Identity, Praeger/Greenwood, p. 62, ISBN 0275952282, <http://books.google.com/books?id=vyQDYqz2kFsC&pg=RA1-PA62&lpg=RA1-PA62&dq=%22puerto+rico%22+official+language+1993&source=web&ots=AZKLran6u3&sig=8fkQ9gwM0B0kwVYMNtXr-_9dnro> 
  2. ^ a b U.S. Department of State. Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty
  3. ^ Allatson, Paul. Key Terms in Latino/a Cultural and Literary Studies, p. 47. Malden, Mass: Blackwell Publishing, 2007. ISBN 1405102500.
  4. ^ Dictionary: Taino Indigenous Peoples of the Caribbean Retrieved: February 21, 2008. (Based on the encyclopedia "Clásicos de Puerto Rico", 2nd. edition. Ed. Cayetano Coll y Toste. Publisher: Ediciones Latinoamericanas, S.A., 1972.).
  5. ^ Abbad y Lasierra, Iñigo. Historia Geográfica, Civil y Natural de la Isla de San Juan Bautista de Puerto Rico. 
  6. ^ Vieques Island - What lies beneath.
  7. ^ Brief Chronology of Puerto Rico (PDF).
  8. ^ Today, Puerto Ricans are also known as Boricuas, or people from Borinquen.
  9. ^ Vicente Yáñez Pinzón was the first appointed governor but he never arrived on the island.
  10. ^ Mari, Brenda A. (April 22, 2005). The Legacy of Añasco: Where the Gods Come to Die. Puerto Rico Herald. Retrieved on March 1, 2006.
  11. ^ USA Seizes Puerto Rico.
  12. ^ History. topuertorico.org. Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
  13. ^ Chronology of Puerto Rico in the Spanish-American War.
  14. ^ Treaty of Paris (1898)
  15. ^ García, Marvin. Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos. National-Louis University. Retrieved on April 28, 2006.
  16. ^ Act of July 3, 1950, Ch. 446, 64 Stat. 319.
  17. ^ Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico - in Spanish (Spanish).
  18. ^ Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico - in English (English translation).
  19. ^ Comunicado de Prensa, Departamento de Estado Concederá Certificacion de Ciudadania de Puerto Rico al Licenciado Juan Mari Bras, 25 de Octubre de 2006. Retrieved: February 24, 2008.
  20. ^ Ciudadanía de Puerto Rico (Spanish). Departamento de Estado, Estado del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico. Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
  21. ^ Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Article I, Section 2
  22. ^ Rules of the House of Representatives
  23. ^ Puerto Rico Primary Election Report Notice
  24. ^ 2008 Presidential Primary Dates and Candidates Filling Datelines for Ballot Access
  25. ^ a b Puerto rico fact Sheet, Government Development Bank for Puerto Rico, 2007, <http://www.gdb-pur.com/economy/factsheet/documents/PR.Eco.Fact.Sheet.pdf>. Retrieved on 2007-12-21 
  26. ^ LinktoPR.com - Fundación de los Pueblos.
  27. ^ Downes v. Bidwell 182 U.S. 244, 287 (1901); Balzac v. Porto Rico, 258 U.S. 298 (1922).
  28. ^ U.S. Const. art. IV, § 3, cl. 2 (“The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States...”).
  29. ^ 39 Stat. 954, 48 USCA 734 “The statutory laws of the United States not locally inapplicable, except as hereinbefore or hereinafter otherwise provided, shall have the same force and effect in Porto Rico as in the United Status…".
  30. ^ For complete statistics of these plebiscites, see Elections in Puerto Rico:Results.
  31. ^ a b c d Report by the President's task force on Puerto Rico's Status (December 2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-24.
  32. ^ Art. IV, Sec. 3, clause 2, U.S. Constitution
  33. ^ Puerto Rico Status Field Hearing. Committee on Resources, U.S. House of Representatives, 105th Congress (April 19, 1997). Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
  34. ^ Keith Bea (May 25, 2005). Political Status of Puerto Rico: Background, Options, and Issues in the 109th Congress. Congressional Research Service. Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
  35. ^ Department of Public Information, United Nations General Assembly (13 June 2006). "Special committee on decolonization approves text calling on United States to expedite Puerto Rican self-determination process". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
  36. ^ Report by the President's task force on Puerto Rico's Status (December 2005). Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
  37. ^ U.S. hardens position on Puerto Rico ("EE.UU. endurece posición sobre Puerto Rico"); Jesús Dávila - El Diario La Prensa; December 22, 2007
  38. ^ Independence Hearing by the Puerto Rico Herald.
  39. ^ CIA - The World Factbook -- Puerto Rico#Geography
  40. ^ Welcome to Puerto Rico!, topuertorico.org, <http://www.topuertorico.org/descrip.shtml>. Retrieved on 2007-12-30 
  41. ^ CIA - The World Factbook -- Jamaica. CIA. Retrieved on 2008-04-24.
  42. ^ CIA - The World Factbook -- Cuba. CIA. Retrieved on 2008-04-24.
  43. ^ Elevations and Distances in the United States. U.S Geological Survey (29 April 2005). Retrieved on November 9, 2006.
  44. ^ Los Lagos de Puerto Rico (Spanish)
  45. ^ Andrzej Pisera, Michael Martinez, Hernan Santos (May 2006). Late Cretaceous Siliceous Sponges From El Rayo Formation, Puerto Rico. Journal of Paleontology. Retrieved on 2008-05-06.
  46. ^ Earthquake History of Puerto Rico. U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved on 2007-09-11.
  47. ^ a b Uri ten Brink. Explorations: Puerto Rico Trench 2003 - Cruise Summary and Results. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved on 2007-09-11.
  48. ^ NOAA Online Weather Data - Puerto Rico. National Weather Service. Retrieved on 2008-05-06.
  49. ^ Island Directory.
  50. ^ Data and Statistics of Country Groups of the World Bank
  51. ^ Income report for Puerto Rico by the World Bank.
  52. ^ Latino/a Education Network Service, retrieved 5 February 2007
  53. ^ Anglelo Falcón, "Atlas of Stateside Puerto Ricans", Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration, published 6 December 2004, retrieved 5 February 2007
  54. ^ Rodríguez, Magdalys. "No hubo acuerdo y el gobierno amaneció cerrado", El Nuevo Día. Retrieved on 2006-05-01. (Spanish)
  55. ^ Miguel Díaz Román. "Incierto el impacto del nuevo tributo", El Nuevo Día, 2006-11-15. Retrieved on 2006-11-15. (Spanish) 
  56. ^ Puerto Rico (United States). islands.unep.ch. Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
  57. ^ Van Middeldyk, R.A.. "Part 4", The History of Puerto Rico. Retrieved on 2008-05-29. 
  58. ^ U.S. Census Bureau; Profiles of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 Census of Population and Housing, Puerto Rico. Retrieved 2008-01-27
  59. ^ Puerto Rico. The Dispatch Online (25 June 2007). Retrieved on 2007-06-26.
  60. ^ Puerto Rico DP-1. Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000.
  61. ^ Martínez Cruzado, Juan C. (2002). The Use of Mitochondrial DNA to Discover Pre-Columbian Migrations to the Caribbean:Results for Puerto Rico and Expectations for the Dominican Republic. KACIKE: The Journal of Caribbean Amerindian History and Anthropology [On-line Journal], Special Issue, Lynne Guitar, Ed. Available at: http://www.kacike.org/MartinezEnglish.pdf [Date of access: 25 September, 2006]
  62. ^ Bonilla et al, Ancestral proportions and their association with skin pigmentation and bone mineral density in Puerto Rican women from New York City. Hum Gen (2004) 115: 57-58 Available at: http://onedroprule.org/forum/index.php?file=bonilla-2004-pigmnt-bmd-pr-women.pdf [Date of access: 30 May, 2008]
  63. ^ Description of Puerto Rico by Topuertorico.org.
  64. ^   "Porto Rico". Catholic Encyclopedia. (1913). New York: Robert Appleton Company. 
  65. ^ Altagracia Ortiz, “‘En la aguja y el pedal eché la hiel’: Puerto Rican Women in the Garment Industry of New York City, 1920-1980.” In Puerto Rican Women and Work, ed. A. Ortiz, 55-81 (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1996).
  66. ^ Altagracia Ortiz, “‘En la aguja y el pedal eché la hiel’: Puerto Rican Women in the Garment Industry of New York City, 1920-1980.” In Puerto Rican Women and Work, ed. A. Ortiz, 55-81 (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1996) 61.
  67. ^ Christine E. Bose, “Puerto Rican Women in the United States: An Overview,” in The Puerto Rican Woman: Perspectives on Culture, History, and Society, ed. Edna Acosta-Belén, (New York: Praeger Publishers, 1986), 148.
  68. ^ Anonymous. Latino/a Education Network Service (website). http://palante.org/History.htm. (Last updated July 1, 2007. Accessed March 12, 2008.)
  69. ^ Linda C. Delgado, “Rufa Concepción Fernández: The Role of Gender in the Migration Process,” in Puerto Rican Women’s History, ed. Félix V. Matos Rodríguez and Linda C. Delgado, (Armonk and London: M.E. Sharpe, 1998), 177.
  70. ^ Carmen Teresa Whalen, “Labor Migrants or Submissive Wives: Competing Narratives of Puerto Rican Women in the Post-World War II Era,” in Puerto Rican Women’s History, ed. Félix V. Matos Rodríguez and Linda C. Delgado, (Armonk and London: M.E. Sharpe, 1998), 218
  71. ^ Ibid
  72. ^ La Operación. Dir. Ana Maria Garcia. Skylight Pictures. New York: Cinema Guild, 1982.
  73. ^ Ibid
  74. ^ Giovannetti, Jorge L. "Popular Music and Culture in Puerto Rico: Jamaican and Rap Music as Cross-Cultural Symbols." In Musical Migrations: Transnationalism and Cultural Hybridity in the Americas, ed. Frances R. Aparicio and Cándida F. Jáquez, 81-98.
  75. ^ Puerto Rican Music TV
  76. ^ Baseball Hall of Fame entry for Roberto Clemente accessed on September 30, 2007
  77. ^ Baseball Hall of Fame entry for Orlando Cepeda accessed on September 30, 2007
  78. ^ BBC Sports - Olympics 2004.
  79. ^ CIA FactBook
  80. ^ Census 2000 Educational Attainment Data
  81. ^ Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico. Departamento de Educación De Puerto Rico. Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
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