Puerto Rico's Political Status Under Its New Constitution

Abstract

-T HE PROBLEM OF Puerto Rico's political status, which has for so long clouded the island's relations with the mainland, is not primarily an expression of resistance to cultural absorption by a numerically stronger community of a heterogeneous and vigorous tradition. Rather, the issue is eminently political in nature and dates back to the midnineteenth century when Puerto Rico was still subject to Spanish sovereignty. The only successful Puerto Rican revolution, though of shortlived consequences, took place in 1868 to free the island from domination by Spain with which it shared a common cultural heritage. The issue at stake was the same then as it has been under American occupation, and as it is today: the fight of a closely knit and distinct community against alien political domination. The arguments advanced in this struggle may have changed since the days of Spanish rule; the basic political issues have remained the same. That the will to alleviate the tensions exists is a matter of record. The United States Congress has demonstrated in recent years a willingness to make political concessions whenever it could do so without inflicting substantial damage upon either the United States or Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico, like most other dependent areas in the world today, is a political and economic liability rather than an asset to the dominant country. Moreover, in recent years the possession of dependent territories has proved increasingly embarrassing to the United States in the forum of world opinion. The question, then, is of considerable interest as to whether or not the authority recently granted Puerto Rico to formulate its own constitution provides a formula for a general solution of the colonial problem. The Puerto Rican government party has made rather ambitious claims to prove that this is the case; the agencies of the United States government have been considerably more modest. The question is a complex one and bears careful examination. It will be investigated from several perspectives: (1) the constitution bill in its historical setting; (2) the intentions of the proponents and makers of the constitution bill; (3) the constitutional status of Puerto Rico under the arrangement; (4) the treatment of the status issue in the constitution-making process; (5) the treatment of the constitution in Congress; (6) Puerto Rican attitudes toward the new status; and (7) the expectations of Puerto Ricans as to their future relations with the United States.