Image from USA Today
There are 3.4 million inhabitants of the island of Puerto Rico
Another 5.1 million Puerto Ricans reside in other parts of the United States
Puerto Ricans in the United States: 2010 -2016. Center for Puerto Rican Studies, Hunter College
Topics on the Page
The Spanish-American War
Constitution of Puerto Rico
History of Puerto Rico
Puerto Rican Citizenship
People of Puerto Rico
Political Cartoon from 1898 Book about the Spanish American War
The Spanish-American War
Library of Congress website on the Spanish American War
Timeline of the Spanish-American War
- When the conflict was settled by the Treaty of Paris, Spain relinquished its sovereignty over Cuba, and ceded Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Guam to the United States.
- Although, rebels in the Philippines and Cuba had looked to the Americans as saviors, the U.S. victory only replaced one imperial power with another.
- The new territory promised markets, military bases, and influence overseas. It also enlisted the U.S. into the ranks of Europe's imperial powers--surely a difficult position for a nation not only founded in opposition to British imperialism, but also fostered on the tenets of the Monroe Doctrine, which asserted that Old and New World systems were so contrary that they should operate on different halves of the globe.
- The Spanish-American War would spur U.S. policy-makers to reinterpret the Monroe Doctrine and reassess American leadership as it extended from the Western Hemisphere to the world.
African American soldiers served with distinction and controversy within the United States during the war.
Click here for an eye-opening video about United States Imperialism in Latin America.
Click here for a 10 question trivia game on the Spanish-American War
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (1952)
- Established the island as a Commonwealth
- Puerto Rico's government functions much like U.S. state governments. People vote for governor, members of the legislature and the island's representative to the House of Representatives--known as a resident commissioner (although that person does not have a vote in the House).
- Puerto Ricans cannot vote in U.S. Presidential elections
The History of Puerto Rico
65th Infantry Regiment (Borinqueneers) Congressional Gold Medal
The 65th Infantry Regiment (Borinqueneers) was the first group of Hispanic segregated soldiers in U.S. history
- Received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2016
Originally home to the TaĆnos, a sea-faring people with especially close ties to the island of Hispaniola
Puerto Rico and the United States, from Origins, a publication of the History Departments of The Ohio State and Miami Universities
Puerto Rican History, Smithsonian Museum of American History
The Lost History of Puerto Rico's Independence Movement, Mother Jones (April 21, 2015)
Puerto Rican Citizenship
Jones-Shaforth Act (1917)
- Granted U.S. Citizenship to anyone born on the island
The Law that Made Puerto Ricans U.S. Citizens, Yet Not Fully Americans, Zocalo Public Square (March 8, 2018)
After a Century of American Citizenship, Puerto Ricans Have Little to Show for It, The Nation (March 2, 2017)
Through a Puerto Rican Lens: The Legacy of the Jones Act, National Museum of American History
Puerto Rico Citizenship Archives Project, University of Connecticut
People of Puerto Rico
A bronze sculpture of Roberto Clemente at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA
Roberto Clemente, Humanitarian and Activist
Beyond Baseball: The Life of Roberto Clemente, Smithsonian
Sport's Most Charitable Legend
Roberto Clemente, Society for American Baseball Research
MLB Remembers the Legacy of Roberto Clemente
Campaign to Retire Roberto Clemente's No. 21 Throughout Baseball Gains Traction, The PostGame (July 8, 2019)
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