A History of Puerto Rico | National Museum of American History 6/5/24, 8:50 PM

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National Museum of American History

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A History
of Puerto
Rico
Puerto Rico's Disasters in Historical
Perspective
Natural and Human-Made Disasters
Puerto Rican society is shaped by colonial histories and ongoing projects.
Christopher Columbus's arrival in 1493 marked the beginning of Spanish
colonization, which endured for over four centuries. Under Spanish rule, the
indigenous Taíno population suffered exploitation and disease. In 1898, Puerto R
fell under American control after the Spanish-American War, significantly chang
political and economic structures. The Jones Act of 1917 granted US citizenship to
Puerto Ricans, but their representation remained limited. Today, the archipelago
continues to grapple with colonial processes that shape the country’s political
status and economic crisis.

TREATY OF PARIS (1898)

Puerto Rico became a colony of the

United States following the Spanish-
American War. Under the terms of the
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A History of Puerto Rico | National Museum of American History 6/5/24, 8:50 PM

American War. Under the terms of the

Treaty of Paris, Spain ceded Puerto
Rico, along with the Philippines and
Guam, to the United States.

Courtesy of the Library of Congress

<https://www.loc.gov/item/2003656920/>

FORAKER ACT (1900)

The Foraker Act established a civil government in Puerto Rico and provided limit
self-government. It created a Puerto Rican House of Delegates and established a
U.S.-appointed governor and executive council. However, Puerto Ricans did not
have full citizenship rights. They were subject to the authority of the U.S. Congre

JONES ACT (1917)

Amid WWI, Congress passed the Jones

Act that granted U.S. citizenship to all
Puerto Ricans born on or after April 25,
1898. This meant that Puerto Ricans
could move freely across the United
States and qualified them for the
dangerous WWI draft. The act
restructured Puerto Rico’s political and
economic structure, giving it more
power in some areas and enforcing the
U.S.'s empire in others. To this day,
Puerto Ricans haven’t been granted the
right to vote in presidential elections or
voting representation in Congress.1
1 https://guides.loc.gov/latinx-civil-

rights/jones-shafroth-
Courtesy of the National Archives and Reco
act#:~:text=The%20Selective%20Servic Administration <https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2017/03/
e%20Act%20of,fought%20in%20World years-of-puerto-rico-puerto-rico-becomes-a-u-s-territ

%20War%20II <https://guides.loc.gov/latinx-civil-

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A History of Puerto Rico | National Museum of American History 6/5/24, 8:50 PM

rights/jones-shafroth-

act#:~:text=the%20selective%20service%20act%20of,fough

t%20in%20world%20war%20ii>

OPERATION BOOTSTRAP (1947)

To industrialize Puerto Rico and

stimulate economic growth, the Puerto
Rican government, with the support of
the United States, implemented
Operation Bootstrap. This program
attracted American businesses with tax
incentives and cheap labor, leading to
significant urban development and
increased employment opportunities.
While these measures allowed some Courtesy of the Library of Congress
families to get out of poverty, Puerto <https://www.loc.gov/item/2017798631/>

Rico’s industrialization also cemented

the reign of American corporations over
the Puerto Rican population and
caused massive displacement and
migration.

COMMONWEALTH STATUS (1952)

Puerto Rico adopted its constitution in 1952, establishing the Commonwealth of

Puerto Rico. This status allowed residents to retain U.S. citizenship and gave the
archipelago a measure of self-government and greater control over internal affai
However, Puerto Rico remained a U.S. territory under the authority of the U.S.
Congress.

POLITICAL STATUS DEBATES BEGIN (1989)

In 1989, Puerto Rico’s acting governor requested a referendum to determine the

island’s future status.2 This opened the doors for many other plebiscites and
referendums in the following years. Plebiscites have been ineffective in solving
Puerto Rico's current colonial status, whereas Statehood and Commonwealth st

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A History of Puerto Rico | National Museum of American History 6/5/24, 8:50 PM

received overwhelming support. However, a definitive resolution has yet to be

reached, and the question of Puerto Rico's political status remains a topic of
ongoing debate.
2https://www.teachingforchange.org/important-dates-puerto-rican-history/

DEBT CRISIS (2015)

The economic model imposed in Puerto Rico, propelled by the actions of financia
institutions and the government, led to the accumulation of a public debt totalin
over $70 billion.3 Due to its status as an unincorporated territory of the United
States, Puerto Rico cannot declare formal bankruptcy, making recovery efforts ev
more difficult.
3https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-18-

387#:~:text=View%20Spanish%20version%20of%20Highlights,deficits%2C%20
ere%20expenses%20exceeded%20revenues <https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-18-
387#:~:text=view%20spanish%20version%20of%20highlights,deficits%2c%20where%20expenses%20exceeded%20reve

PROMESA WAS ENACTED (2016)

President Obama signed the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic
Stability Act (PROMESA) to manage the island’s debt. It appointed seven, mostly
American, members to a Financial Oversight Board that controls the governmen
budget and attempts to restructure Puerto Rico’s economy.4 In subsequent years
Puerto Ricans saw slashes to the nation’s public education, health, and essential
services budgets while corruption remained rampant.5
4https://oversightboard.pr.gov/about-us/ <https://oversightboard.pr.gov/about-us/>

5https://claridadpuertorico.com/junta-de-control-fiscal-un-fiasco-a-cinco-anos

que-tenemos

HURRICANE MARÍA (2017)

Hurricane María, a category 4 storm, devastated Puerto Rico in September 2017.

was one of the strongest storms to hit the archipelago, leaving Puerto Ricans
without power or access to essential services for months. Puerto Ricans sought a
relied on local and federal government authorities to get help and support in the
aftermath of the storm. At the same time, the state’s shortcomings and
unpreparedness led many people to rely on their communities and community-
based organizations for help. People supported each other through mutual aid,
community kitchens, and their localized environmental knowledge. In 2023, the
hurricane’s damage is still visible, leaving houses with blue tarp roofs, an unrelia
power grid, and collective trauma.

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THE SUMMER OF 2019 (2019)

Protests across Puerto Rico erupted after journalists published the contents of a
chat that included communications between Governor Roselló and other
government officials. The chat revealed information about the abuse of political
power; participants in the chat bragged about Hurricane María’s mismanageme
and disrespected countless Puerto Ricans.6 The discontent among the populatio
reached a boiling point after years of rejecting the Financial Oversight Board,
requests to audit the nation’s debt, and petitions to reform the island’s major
political parties.7 After weeks of protests, Governor Ricardo Rosselló publicly
announced his resignation.
6https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/puerto-rico-is-in-chaos-and-some

worry-continued-instability-is-a-major-threat/2019/07/18/3dbfb416-a8b8-11e9
9214-246e594de5d5_story.html#comments-wrapper
<https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/puerto-rico-is-in-chaos-and-some-worry-continued-instability-is-a-major-

threat/2019/07/18/3dbfb416-a8b8-11e9-9214-246e594de5d5_story.html#comments-wrapper>

7https://www.80grados.net/verano-de-2019-revuelta-o-revolucion/

<https://www.80grados.net/verano-de-2019-revuelta-o-revolucion/>

EARTHQUAKES (JANUARY 2020)

In the early morning of Three King’s Day, a popular national holiday, the
southwestern part of Puerto Rico faced a series of significant earthquakes and
aftershocks that led to 8,300 damaged homes.7 These natural phenomena expos
the public’s distrust of the government and its lack of emergency planning after
hurricane María.8 Many struggled to house their families and deal with the loss
uncertainty, but Puerto Ricans from other parts of the island and worldwide cam
together to provide aid.
8https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/01/us/puerto-rico-earthquakes-fema.html

9https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/01/us/puerto-rico-earthquakes-fema.html

<https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/01/us/puerto-rico-earthquakes-fema.html>

COVID-19 PANDEMIC (2020)

Not yet recovered from the series of earthquakes, Puerto Rican lives were thrown
another loop when the COVID-19 pandemic started. Strict curfews and closures
were instated, but the government’s lack of coordination, misinformation, and
corruption was apparent.10 Once again, Puerto Ricans turned to each other for h
to deal with a high number of COVID cases, food insecurity, the public health
impact of tourism, and a mental health crisis.11 12 13 Against all odds, Puerto Rican

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scientists developed more efficient testing, contact tracing procedures, and

educational campaigns later adopted by government entities. Community-based
organizations identified where the government’s response was lacking in its
provision of reliable information, public health campaigns, and management of
public and private spaces, and leveraged their resources to build networks of
collective care.
10https://nacla.org/news/2020/08/21/puerto-rico-state-emergency

<https://nacla.org/news/2020/08/21/puerto-rico-state-emergency>

11https://www.npr.org/2020/05/13/854734386/mam-im-still-hungry-in-puerto-

rico-child-hunger-becomes-a-
flashpoint#:~:text=Newsletters-,'Mam%C3%A1%2C%20I'm%20Still%20Hungry
A%20In%20Puerto%20Rico,island%20say%20it's%20not%20enough.
<https://www.npr.org/2020/05/13/854734386/mam-im-still-hungry-in-puerto-rico-child-hunger-becomes-a-

flashpoint#:~:text=newsletters-,'mam%c3%a1%2c%20i'm%20still%20hungry'%3a%20in%20puerto%20rico,island%20say

s%20not%20enough.>

12https://www.thedailybeast.com/deluded-anti-mask-tourists-swarm-covid-

plagued-puerto-rico
13https://www.elnuevodia.com/noticias/locales/notas/aumentan-en-50-las-

llamadas-a-la-linea-pas-por-el-covid-19/ <https://www.elnuevodia.com/noticias/locales/notas/aume
en-50-las-llamadas-a-la-linea-pas-por-el-covid-19/>

HURRICANE FIONA (2022)

Almost six years after Hurricane María hit, another category four hurricane brou
unprecedented rainfall, flooding, and landslides.14 Hurricane Fiona was a grim
reminder that the climate crisis made these catastrophic storms more frequent
while the island’s infrastructure kept decaying. Already experienced in disaster
responses, community-based organizations jumped into action while the
government depended heavily on the response of these organizations.
14https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/18/weather/tropical-storm-fiona-

sunday/index.html <https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/18/weather/tropical-storm-fiona-sunday/index.html>

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