Puerto Rico, Another Lone Star State?

Puerto Rico, Another Lone Star State?

(H.R. 900, The Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007 proposes that the island decides between statehood or independence in a plebiscite that must take place no later than December 31, 2009)

In April 1991, Governor Rafael Hernández Colón made Spanish the sole official language of Puerto Rico. Despite the U.S. status of being a country with no official language, the Act of 1902 made English an official language on the island. This act had the formal effect of eradicating any trace of a Spanish colonial legacy and initiated the dominance of Anglo-Saxon culture. Yet, a century later, the main lingua franca on the island was still incontestably Spanish, and the vibrancy of its usage is for many Puerto Ricans proof of the unquenchable nature of their unique identity. Accordingly, Hernández Colón declared on April 5, 1991, "With this [his signature to the bill], we reaffirm the country´s will to exist. We declare our mother tongue to be our most precious sign of identity. We project our potential, discovering ourselves inside ourselves, wanting to be ourselves, fighting against being someone else. With the strength which comes down to us from the most intimate part of our ego, we are preparing to act in history. Through this great exercise of our will, we are protecting the rich heritage of the generations which preceded us, the generations which blended Indian, African and Spanish in that special way which makes a Puerto-Rican."

ENDS

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