PUERTO RICO: JEWEL OF THE CROWN OF THE AMERICAS

Subject: Executive Order 13517 President Obama committed to provide de-colonization process to P.R. after pleciscite
Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2012 13:06:03 -0500

On October 30, 2009, President Obama Signed Executive Order 13517, which directed the Task Force to maintain its focus on the status question.
Recommendation # 7: “If efforts on the Island do not provide a clear result in the short term, the President should support, and Congress should enact,
self-executing legislation that specifies in advance for the people of Puerto Rico a set of acceptable status options that the United States is politically committed to fulfilling.”
This legislation should commit the United States to honor the choice of the > people of Puerto Rico (provided it is one of the status options specified in the legislation) and should specify the means by which such a choice would be made. The Task Force recommends that, by the end of 2012, the  Administration develop, draft, and work with Congress to enact the proposed  legislation.

Midwest Association for Latin American Studies

PUERTO RICO: JEWEL OF THE CROWN OF THE AMERICAS

Mario E. Porrata

Friday, November 6, 2010

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Friends of MALAS,

This is my theory. In exposing this theory, I hope to move you to think thoroughly, for this issue could be simple, or greatly complicated.

I have been reading about our illegal immigration monumental problem. In fact, I reached a point where I stopped gathering clippings about three years ago.

I have read about the problems illegal immigrants cause; I have read about how much they cost each one of us.

I have also read about how much US Citizens benefit from hiring those persons at very low wages and compensation.

But deep in my heart I also see a situation that I just simply do not like. That situation is the lack of opportunities those human beings have in their home countries. They need to move into greener grounds; and those grounds are found mostly in the United States. However miserable their lives may be as illegal immigrants in the several States, they are still far better off than staying at home!

This is simply outrageous.

Why is it so difficult for those countries to provide their citizens with a better standard of living?

They do have the resources. So what is it they are lacking? I’ll tell you: They lack a vision; a vision that thank God was foreseen by the Founders of our Constitution, by the Founders of our nation, by the Founders of the Union of Citizens of the United States of América.

It is a vision of freedom; freedom based on the sacred concept of life; freedom based on the sacred concept of liberty; freedom based on the sacred concept of private property; and all these fundamental rights work together for the general welfare of its citizens. George Washington called it the character of the Nation.

But all of these sacred concepts had a theater on which to operate.

First, it was a sovereign Constitution, approved by no less than the sovereign people of the several States. A «More Perfect Union» was born because of this incredible and unprecedented act of sovereignty, which was absent in the Articles of Confederation. «We The People» was a powerful mandate that reflected the seriousness of the situation those Founders wanted to create.

Second, it was a Limited Constitution. It was not a «blank check» by which Congress could act in whatever way they wanted. The Constitution specifically assigned those powers that were strictly necessary to carry out the Will of the People. And to make sure there was no doubt about this requirement, it was specifically stated that the powers not delegated in the Constitution remained in the States and the People. And they were equally clear that there were no limits as to what those powers, or rights, were or could be. Thus, the Ninth Amendment.

Third, those Founders had every intention to create a Constitution that would guarantee stability in the Union to the highest degree possible. I must say that George Washington was the most ardent advocate of this principle. So, they organized a process whereby amendments to the Constitution could only be considered when proposed by two thirds of Congressmen in each House and Senate.and/or by two thirds of the legislatures of the several states. And for final approval, the Constitution requires the approval of three-fourths of the legislatures of the several States to any amendment.

Fourth, the government of each State must be republican. Republican? Yes. Meaning that such government belongs to the People. It is not otherwise around, where the People belong to the government. The power of this principle has been diminished, yet it is a most fundamental principle in the foundation of our America. Those Founders really believed in the individuality of the People; the more successful each individual citizen is, the summation of their successes will create a great nation. And the government must react to their needs by providing the conditions necessary for their success. The government was never meant to own them and feed them; it was meant to belong to them as a tool for individual success.

Fifth, George Washington was pressed really hard to include in the body of the Constitution a series of amendments that would guarantee a government that would not trample on the rights of the citizens by a powerful central government. Washington was able to convince the people of the several States that approval of the basic structure of government was essential, before any amendment would be considered. The amendments, a total of almost 50, were already on the table while the discussion on the body of the Constitution was being aired. Finally, a total of some 24 amendments, squeezed into ten, were approved right after the approval of the Constitution. Those amendments, as a group called The Bill of Rights, were approved to protect the People from a totalitarian central government.

Sixth, of utmost importance is the privilege accorded each citizen of the several states the ability to settle anywhere within the United States and territories without any effect at all in their fundamental rights and the protection of the US Constitution. This is the purpose of the Union of Citizens; this is the basis of our Constitution; it is found in the privileges and immunities clause of the Constitution; it is our life as American Citizens. Census data reveals that one third of the native population of the several States reside in other sister States. Given the diversity of opportunities provided by the several States, this privilege allows US Citizens to develop their intellects in whatever way they feel like, because they know there will be a place for them anywhere in the United States. Ladies and Gentlemen, this was the vision of George Washington for all Americans.

So much filtering provides the United States in general, and the several States in particular, with a degree of stability that is absent in many parts of the world, but most appropriately it is absent in Central and South America.

Our brothers and sisters south of our borders and in the Caribbean do not enjoy the tremendous advantages that the US Constitution provides to our citizens. And they suffer continuously from lacking such advantages. So, their solution is to come to our soil. And when they intend to do so, by legal means, they encounter an astronomical line of human beings trying to do the same. Which means a long, long wait: The last time I read about this matter there were over six million people waiting in line to enter legally into the United States!

As their problems are immediate, they can’t wait; and they even risk their lives to move into the States and territories illegally. They also perform all kinds of tricks to get in, like buying a marriage to a US Citizen. Is there a solution to this problem? My answer is yes.

If the people south of our borders and in the Caribbean could see the possibility of becoming a State of the United States, they would go for it. But they do not see it. They have been made to feel that they are different and that they do not match. However, they force themselves to match through legal immigration. This attitude does not make sense.

What I call cultural affinity is not an obstacle for these countries to become States and come under the US Constitution. New Mexico, Arizona and California were Hispanics before they became States of our Union. But they had the advantage of being contiguous to other States, and thus their differences were not considered as essential for incorporation.

The United States is a Union of Citizens which totally disregards any cultural influence.

The Constitution simply ignores the origins of our citizens, as it was approved by people of so many different origins. Our Constitution is a document of humanitarian principles, to such extent that Africans were brought within its protection with the 14th Amendment. It has been said, many, many times, that ours is a nation of immigrants. The Census of Population counts how many of us are German, Italian, French, English, etc.; it also counts how many of us are white, black, etc. The Constitution applies to all unconditionally, as long as they are legal residents.

The population in Puerto Rico is a mix of mostly white, yet Hispanic, citizens. We also have the native Indian complexity. Go to Argentina and you’ll find a similar blend. Go to Mexico and you’ll find the same, except for a different Indian complexity, one which is found everywhere in the south. Central and South America, in general, show similar characteristics. Why? Because most of America was originally populated by Europeans, while a native Indian population already existed.

Upon this environment I suggest that the admission of Puerto Rico as a State of the Union is also the admission of Central and South America. With Puerto Rico as the spearhead of manifest destiny or the Monroe Doctrine, the countries south of the border will react with great hope that they can also join the Union, but in their own countries.

The Monroe Doctrine, which still exists, forbids the United States from interfering in the affairs of the countries south of the border or the Caribbean. My proposition follows this policy.

For the hope of a better future will be born from a change in attitude in those countries, not from an imposition of the United States. It will be the citizens of the several countries, acting on their own initiative and following the path of Puerto Rico, that will move to be part of the Union of Citizens.

And they will do whatever is required to accomplish their goal.

In my opinion, democracy will flourish in those countries that are today following a path of totalitarianism, like Venezuela and Bolivia. Friendly countries like Panamá and Costa Rica will move to adopt the principles of the United States Constitution. Many of them will simply say: If Puerto Rico did it, so can we. Those countries will understand that the United States has never interfered in the cultural affairs of the States; that each State has its own customs, traditions, flags, anthems and governments. Many will understand that English is merely a very convenient common language, not a political weapon. And they will also see that Spanish has become the second language of the Union.

What I see is not in a dream; it is based on the history of the United States and of Puerto Rico in particular. It is based on the US Constitution where the word culture is not to be found. It is based on the fact that all of us are America. It is based on the fact that the United States has found a formula for prosperity that can be shared by our brothers in South America, if they want to.

Puerto Rico will give them that opportunity. Some people in the States will fear a greater degree of immigration. I reject that. The most pressing cause of immigration is the lack of hope for a better future in their own countries. Such negative attitude will simply disappear. People will not migrate to the United States, because they are, or will be, in the United States. Quite to the contrary, many natives from their countries who have established in the several States will likely move back to help build their native lands and enjoy the benefits of the opportunities that the United States will provide.

In this process Puerto Rico will play a tremendous educational role. The people of Puerto Rico were moved to believe that a new political status was created in the process of 1950-1952, when a local Constitution was established. Such political status was portrayed as being of a local creation and separate from the United States. It was a monumental hoax which has created a sense of not being part of the United States. Consequently Puerto Rico has not moved aggressively to request admission as a State. We have had to privately and voluntarily dedicate thousands of hours to educate our people on the reality of our true political status.as a territory of the United States.

Such a scene cannot be allowed to happen on those countries that will follow our steps.

So, it is in this sense that I say that Puerto Rico will become the Jewel of the Crown for the future of America. And believe me, Hugo Chávez knows this; which is why he seems to be attempting to interfere, both in the Congress and in Puerto Rico, with tons of money it is said, to prevent a request of admission for the State of Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico, as a State of the United States, will provide Central America, South America and the Caribbean with the hope they need to have a better future as part of the United States. The supposed anti American attitude that has developed over the years, which in my opinion is a product of sheer jealousy, will gradually disappear and turn itself into a powerful force towards democracy and prosperity for the entire hemisphere.

And the United States, today the most powerful nation in the world, will become the most powerful hemisphere in the world and a model to follow for democracy and prosperity for every human being.

Thanks for listening.

Mario E. Porrata