Puerto Rican Americans

History and Political Status

Cristóbal Colón landed in Puerto Rico (called Borikén by its inhabitants) in 1493 and claimed the island and its Taíno native population for Spain. By the 1800s, the Puerto Rican population, culture, and national identity had emerged as the product of a mix of ethnic and racial groups, including Spanish immigrants and their descendants, descendants of African slaves, people of mixed Taíno and Spanish heritage, and people of mixed African and Spanish heritage. In 1898, following the Spanish-American War, Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory, and in 1917 Puerto Ricans were granted American citizenship.

Politically, Puerto Rico is a commonwealth defined as a free state associated with the United States. Puerto Ricans have the right to elect their own democratic [Page 374]government and the ability to enact educational policy. However, important federal governance and economic institutions prevail on the island, including the currency and banking system, the military, immigration and naturalization services, and the postal system. Puerto Rico is neither a state nor an independent nation. Puerto Rico has two official languages, two flags, two national anthems, and two cultures. The blend of Spanish, Taíno, and African traditions that characterized the island's population in 1898 coexist today with the more immediate influence of the American economy and culture.

For the last few decades, one of the pressing political issues in Puerto Rico has been to resolve its political status by becoming either a state or an independent republic. Even though the power to decide on a change of status ultimately resides with the U.S. government, several referendums held on the island since the 1960s have shown that Puerto Ricans prefer to remain a commonwealth. The present status provides Puerto Ricans many of the advantages of American citizenship while allowing for the preservation of the Spanish language and of the Puerto Rican culture and national identity.

Puerto Rican Migration to the United States

The largest migration of Puerto Ricans to the United States occurred between 1945 and 1965, when large numbers of rural and poor Puerto Ricans relocated, primarily to New York City and to some areas of New Jersey, Connecticut, and Chicago, in search of better economic opportunities. Because of economic conditions in Puerto Rico and the United States, during the 1970s, large numbers of Puerto Ricans living in the United States returned to the island. In the 1980s, net migration again favored movement from the island to the mainland, where Puerto Ricans continued to disperse throughout the northeastern United States. More recently, Puerto Rican migration to the United States has included large numbers of professional and hightech workers. Current census figures show that there are about the same number of Puerto Ricans living on the island (approximately 3,623,392) as there are in the mainland United States (approximately 3,406,178).

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