Solana Larsen
Anthony’s got New York covered. So I thought I’d let you all know what it looks like from Puerto Rico. I made some phone calls in the past days to see if anyone was watching the elections on TV tonight, and the resoundingly bored answer is ‘no’.
Most of the people I know here are either journalists or active in politics, which makes it even more surprising that there isn’t any more interest. Granted, Puerto Ricans themselves can’t vote, but federal laws do apply here, and nearly 100 Puerto Ricans have so far died in Iraq.
Lately, tensions in the US/Puerto Rico relationship have been quite marked here.
A couple of weeks ago, a jury in federal court decided to give a life sentence to a man convicted of murder instead of the death penalty. The Puerto Rican constitution forbids the death penalty, but the American constitution allows it. Every once in a while someone tries to push it through.
I myself sat in on one of the last days of a federal court case that found two senior aides to the former governor Pedro Rosello (of the pro-statehood PNP) guilty of corruption. There have been several high-profile corruption cases here in the past few years. It is somehow ironic that is those who advocate US statehood who keep embezzling federal funds.
In spite of the fact that everyone here speaks Spanish, all proceedings in federal court must be in English. You can’t help but wonder if the Puerto Rican jury really understand when the prosecutor from the Public Integrity Section in Washington DC uses terms like “he drank the Kool-Aid” to describe the complicity of the defendant.
Last night I went to a small pre-fundraising event for the pro-independence newspaper, Claridad. Robert Kennedy Jr. is coming to speak on 25 January in defense of Puerto Rico’s beautiful beaches, which are under constant attack from polluting hotel developers.
Kennedy helped in the protests against US military bases on the Puerto Rican island Vieques. According to legend here, he was arrested and remained in custody the night his youngest daughter was born in 2001. As a tribute, she was named Aidan Caohman Vieques.
The only comment I heard yesterday in regard to the election was, “The Republicans are in so much trouble that even the Cubans in Miami are starting to vote for Democrats.” As much as US politics affect people here, everything is still seen through a local lens.
