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Puerto Rico: On July 25, let’s celebrate federalism
The fact is that several plebiscites have been held, all won by the statehood movement, but without any result in Congress. Since 1898, Puerto Rico has been the U.S. territory most progressively assimilated to statehood in our nation’s history. Our ancestors voluntarily renounced their Spanish citizenship in 1898; we have met all the requirements of the Northwest Ordinance of 1789, the criteria for which served as the basis for the transformation of more than 30 territories into states; we have been U.S. citizens by consent since 1917; we have elected our own governor since 1948; and since 1952, we have had a Constitution governing our internal affairs, approved by the people and ratified by Congress. Our Constitution affirms our loyalty to the U.S. federal system, the democratic system of government by consent, U.S. citizenship, and the U.S. Constitution (Preamble, Constitution of Puerto Rico). We pay various federal taxes; we have defended democracy in military conflicts; We have reached the minimum population threshold to vote for the president and members of Congress; and the federal Constitution and federal laws are applied daily in federal courts and throughout Puerto Rico, just as they are in the states. After 128 years, Congress must make history by passing a resolution granting equal rights to the Puerto Rican people. It must certify us as an incorporated territory in the process of assimilation into the state.
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