“I didn't know I had this many fans in Puerto Rico. I'm going to carry this memory to my grave.” KnowsMemoriesFansGravesPuerto RicoRico Author:Allen Iverson
“Automobile in America,Chromium steel in America,Wire-spoke wheel in America,Very big deal in America!Immigrant goes to America,Many hellos in America,Nobody knows in America,Puerto Rico's in America!I like the shores of America!Comfort is yours in America!Knobs on the doors in America!Wall-to-wall floors in America!” KnowsBigsAmericaDealsDoorsWallComfortWheelsImmigrantsSpokesShoreSteelWireBig DealAutomobileNobody KnowsPuerto RicoRicoKnobsChromium Author:Stephen Sondheim
“Yet, Puerto Ricos economic convergence and political integration with the rest of the nation is in a state of arrest - even though the island has been within the national borders, political system and customs territory of the U.S. for a century.” Has BeensStatesPoliticalNationsEconomicCenturyBordersIslandsCustomsTerritoryIntegrationPolitical SystemsPuerto RicoRicoConvergenceNational Borders Author:Dick Thornburgh
“Puerto Rico loses out on billions of dollars annually because it is treated unequally under a range of federal programs, including tax credits available to millions of households in the States that do not pay federal income taxes.” StatesLosesPayMillionsTaxesProgramDollarsIncludingAvailableCreditBillionsIncomeTreatedRangeHouseholdIncome TaxPuerto RicoRico Author:Pedro Pierluisi
“Puerto Rico has two divergent paths forward. After a reasonable transition period, it could become a state. Or it can become a sovereign nation.” TwoStatesNationsPathPeriodsReasonableTransitionSovereignDivergentPuerto RicoRico Author:Pedro Pierluisi
“Between 1831 and 1891, US armed forces - usually the Marines - invaded Mexico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Panama, Colombia, Nicaragua, Uruguay, Brazil, Haiti, Argentina, and Chile a total of thirty-one times, a fact not many of us are informed about in school. The Marines intermittently occupied Nicaragua form 1909 to 1933, Mexico from 1914 to 1919, and Panama from 1903 to 1914. To 'restore order' the Marines occupied Haiti from 1915 to 1934, killing over two thousand Haitians who resisted 'pacification.'” TwoFactsSchoolFormPoliticalOrderForceThousandKillingThirtyRepublicOne TimeMexicoMarineCubaBrazilHaitiArmed ForcesArgentinaColombiaChilePuerto RicoRicoNicaraguaPanamaDominican Republic Author:Michael Parenti
“Jesse Jackson's wife was arrested in Puerto Rico while protesting the naval bombings there. Jesse said he was holding a meeting with four of his secretaries to decide what to do and that these meetings could run well into the night.” WellsSaidRunningNightFourWifeMeetingsSecretaryArrestedBombingNavalPuerto RicoRico Author:Jay Leno
“I never thought anything was strange in Puerto Rico other than the big mosquitos; because I was born there, nothing was really foreign to me. I think what I saw strange coming to L.A. was that a lot of people are a little bit two-faced. In Puerto Rico, you don't get that.” PeopleThinkingLittlesTwoBigsBitsBornSawsStrangeLittle BitPuerto RicoRico Author:Joyce Giraud
“I was very skinny and very lanky and kind of awkward. In Puerto Rico everybody is a little more voluptuous, with these beautiful bodies and there I was the skinny lanky girl.” KindLittlesBodyBeautifulGirlAwkwardSkinnyPuerto RicoRicoVoluptuousBeautiful Body Author:Joyce Giraud
“Many houses were still full of light when, at the close of March 22, the people of the Círculo returned to their homes, which were gladdened with a fleeting gladness by an hour of justice - for there are still many slaves, black and white, in Puerto Rico!” PeopleStillsHomeLightHouseBlackHoursJusticeWhiteSlaveMarchBlack And WhiteFleetingGladnessPuerto RicoRico Author:Jose Marti
“Puerto Rico is an island separated by an ocean, a language, a culture. All of that put it in a position where it's like, "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas," but what happened in Puerto Rico never happened at all. It's not like there was a decades-long conspiracy. It's just the aggregation of all these historical forces made it difficult for this information to exist in one place.” LongMadeHappensCultureLanguageForceDifficultHappenedInformationPositionOceanHistoricalDecadesMade ItIslandsConspiracyVegasPuerto RicoRico Author:Nelson Antonio Denis
“I'm very used to hurricanes. I'm from Puerto Rico and we have 3 or 4 a year. When you have no power, no light, no email, no place to go, you realize who your loved ones are and where you are in your life at that moment.” YearsMomentsLightUsedRealizingThat MomentWhere You AreLoved OnesEmailHurricanesPlaces To GoPuerto RicoRico Author:Luis D. Ortiz
“I said I deserved a home fight, either Philly or Puerto Rico, since I'm always going to someone else's place to fight. Everyone thought it was a great idea to go back to Puerto Rico.” SaidIdeasHomeFightingGreat IdeaPuerto RicoRico Author:Danny Garcia
“My parents always talk about Puerto Rico. My dad's whole family lives in Puerto Rico. My great grandma lives in Puerto Rico and I got to meet her a couple years ago.” YearsWholeParentCoupleDadYears AgoMy DadFamily LifeGrandmaWhole FamilyPuerto RicoRicoGreat Grandma Author:Danny Garcia
“In Puerto Rico, we have a lot of traditions. We eat a very typical thing that's called 'pasteles' - it's almost like a tamale made of bananas, and we make it all together. Like, all the women of the family unite, and it's a very big deal, a very big thing.” MadeBigsTogetherDealsTraditionTypicalBig ThingsBig DealBananasPuerto RicoRicoTamales Author:Joyce Giraud
“But being on location and shooting, whether its in Puerto Rico or Atlanta, it always reminds me of how really cool my job can be. Interacting with the fans is one of the best parts of it.” JobsFansShootingLocationReally CoolInteractingAtlantaPuerto RicoRico Author:Dwayne Johnson
“I visit the island [Puerto Rico] as often as I humanly can. And I visit with community as frequently as possible, given the demands on me. I meet with kids. I meet with adults. I try to spend time and to listen to people talk about their lives.” PeopleTryingKidsGivenCommunityDemandAdultsIslandsEnd TimesSpend TimePuerto RicoRico Author:Sonia Sotomayor
“Without question, so many people, throughout my life, never think of Puerto Rico as part of the United States. Many people have no idea what the relationship is between Puerto Rico and the United States. And certainly, I have been asked if we are citizens.” PeopleIfsThinkingHas BeensIdeasStatesUnitedUnited StatesCitizensNo IdeaPuerto RicoRico Author:Sonia Sotomayor
“Elijah Muhammad teaches us the truth of God beautified the planet by separating everybody in different countries for themselves: Chinese in China, English in England, Puerto Ricans in Puerto Rico, Ethiopians in Ethiopia, Arabians in Arabia, Egyptians in Egypt, and Americans took that country and stole it away so there's always going to be trouble and chaos.” DifferentCountryTeachTroublePlanetsEnglandChaosChinaChineseEgyptMuhammadArabiaSeparatingElijahPuerto RicoDifferent CountriesEthiopiaRicoTruth Of GodElijah Muhammad Author:Muhammad Ali
“If Francoise Sagan hadn't written a book called A Chateau in Sweden, I would certainly write a short story called A Chateau in Puerto Rico. And I may yet.” IfsWritingMayBookStoriesWrittenShort StorySwedenPuerto RicoRicoSagan Author:Truman Capote
“Javy [Baez] grew up in Puerto Rico, played a lot of baseball as a youth, played a lot of winter ball. He's been taught properly and well.” WellsYouthTaughtGrewGrew UpBaseballBallsWinterPuerto RicoRico Author:Joe Maddon
“I think crisis starts with the government of Puerto Rico. It has to take measures to solve the fiscal problems that it has, which are very serious. It's very basic: it's the same thing that is happening in Washington.” ThinkingProblemGovernmentSeriousHappeningsCrisisSolvePuerto RicoRico Author:Marco Rubio
“Puerto Rico is a government that is spending money that it doesn't have. What's coming in and what's going out don't match. That is, what they are receiving in taxes is not sufficient to cover the spending that they are taking on. And any entity that does that, whether a family, a business, a government, is going to go broke and bankrupt. They are asking to be given the right to declare bankruptcy, which I think should be an option, as a last resort, if there is no other resource.” IfsThinkingShouldDoeGovernmentLastsGivenTaxesResourcesAskingSpendingBrokeSufficientReceivingEntityGoing OutResortsBankruptcyPuerto RicoSpending MoneyRico Author:Marco Rubio
“They [ the government of Puerto Rico] are asking to be given the right to declare bankruptcy, which I think should be an option, as a last resort, if there is no other resource. But there also need to be measures, changes within the government of Puerto Rico, in the ways that the island's funds are administered, not just to deal with this budget issue, but also to have, to attract the economic growth that is necessary for Puerto Rico to begin to grow economically. They are losing population, and they are losing economically.” IfsThinkingWayNeedsShouldGovernmentLastsGivenGrowsGrowthDealsIssuesEconomicLosingResourcesAskingPopulationBudgetsIslandsFundResortsEconomic GrowthBankruptcyPuerto RicoRico Author:Marco Rubio
“We are getting thousands and thousands of professionals, very highly-trained people, from Puerto Rico who are now living in Florida, and who have obviously contributed a lot to this state, but the island is losing that population.” PeopleStatesLosingPopulationIslandsFloridaPuerto RicoRico Author:Marco Rubio
“[Puerto Rico] losing not just taxpayers, but professionals, people who are vital to their communities. I don't think that is good. So undoubtedly, if what we are facing in Puerto Rico in terms of budget and debt goes on, if it continues, it would be a disaster for the island.” PeopleIfsThinkingWould BeTermCommunityGoes OnLosingDebtDisasterBudgetsIslandsTaxpayersPuerto RicoRico Author:Marco Rubio
“Actually, I am asking for this: for something to be done. I think that if it had been one of the 50 states, something would have already been done. Unfortunately, you know, Puerto Rico is a territory. Very often they forget about Puerto Rico.” IfsThinkingKnowsStatesDoneForgetAskingTerritoryPuerto RicoRico Author:Marco Rubio
“I'm always talking about the issue of Puerto Rico.I also spoke about it on the Senate floor, and I think it should be given the importance, the priority it deserves.” ThinkingShouldGivenTalkingIssuesDeserveImportancePrioritiesSpokesSenatePuerto RicoRico Author:Marco Rubio
“Same way I have my entire life. Keep my family and friends close. My Latino friends close. I visit the island [Puerto Rico] as often as I humanly can.” WayMy FamilyIslandsFamily And FriendsLatinoNo FriendsPuerto RicoRico Author:Sonia Sotomayor
“Without question, so many people, throughout my life, never think of Puerto Rico as part of the United States.” PeopleThinkingStatesUnitedUnited StatesPuerto RicoRico Author:Sonia Sotomayor
“I got a message from one of my friends in Puerto Rico, who said, 'Sonia, there's nobody working in Puerto Rico - they're all glued to the television'. And I got a similar message from a friend in Spain.” SaidTelevisionMessagesMy FriendsSpainPuerto RicoRico Author:Sonia Sotomayor
“I was aware that my nomination was drawing a lot of attention, particularly in the Latino world, not just in Puerto Rico. It was touching.” WorldAttentionDrawingTouchingLatinoNominationsPuerto RicoRico Author:Sonia Sotomayor
“Regardless of what ideological twist people may have, about 90 to 95 percent of our population [in Puerto Rico] really values our citizenship. It's of utmost importance.” PeopleMayValuesPercentImportancePopulationCitizenshipTwistsIdeologicalPuerto RicoRico Author:Ricky Rossello
“Puerto Rico is not a full part of the United States. We're a territory or a colonial territory.” StatesUnitedUnited StatesTerritoryPuerto RicoRico Author:Ricky Rossello
“I'd want Puerto Rico to become the 51st state of America.” WantStatesAmericaPuerto RicoRico Author:Ricky Rossello
“Puerto Rico lacks resources, but that's not the fault of the U.S.” ResourcesFaultsPuerto RicoRico Author:Francisco Rodriguez
“America has always been the richest and most secure, and sometimes the most dangerous country in the world. In the early years, the danger was to everybody near us, slaves, Native Americans, Mexicans. It finally expanded in 1898 to the Caribbean, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, and the Philippines.” WorldYearsCountrySometimesAmericaDangerousDangerSlaveSecureNativeNative AmericanHawaiiCubaPhilippinesCaribbeanPuerto RicoRico Author:Noam Chomsky
“The truth of the matter is that we are being very aggressive, so that we can lay the foundations for investors to come to Puerto Rico, for jobs to be created, and for opportunities to ensue. And our objective, again, is for Puerto Rico, for the people of Puerto Rico who want to stay here, for them to have the opportunity to stay here.” PeopleOpportunityAggressiveInvestorsPuerto Rico Author:Ricky Rossello
“There's one last thing we need to point out. And it is a fact that Puerto Rico is a colonial territory of the United States. This puts us in a very significant disadvantage to all of the other states and to all of the other American citizens. As a matter of comparative, the U.S. citizens, the Puerto Ricans that live in the United States have much better incomes, more than twice as much, participate in the labor force of greater scales, have better results in the education system and so forth.” LaborSignificantEducation SystemPuerto Rico Author:Ricky Rossello
“The one key difference is that Puerto Rico is a colonial territory. We don't have representation. We have a difficult time getting funding from the federal government. This is critical component that we need to change.” DifficultRepresentationDifficult TimesPuerto Rico Author:Ricky Rossello
“We're trying our best to develop sort of strategies. We have already turned into law a labor reform law that will allow for more opportunities to ensue. We have also established a permits law that will facilitate permits in Puerto Rico. We are about to roll out a comprehensive tax reform that will enhance the base and will reduce the rates in Puerto Rico.” TryingOpportunityTaxesLaborStrategyRatePuerto Rico Author:Ricky Rossello
“I am 38 years old, and I want to live in Puerto Rico and I want to create a path forward for growth. I realize that have come at the most challenging times to become governor, but I want to push things forward.” GrowthRealizingChallengesPathPuerto Rico Author:Ricky Rossello
“I know that, with clear leadership, with a clear path forward, understanding that the times are tough and that there are great challenges, if we put a step in the right direction, I think we can push forward for a better Puerto Rico and, of course, renegotiation efforts with different creditors, so that it is something that is reasonable for them and something that is reasonable for us.” ThinkingDifferentUnderstandingChallengesEffortPathToughPuerto Rico Author:Ricky Rossello
“The overwhelming majority of Puerto Rico is completely, completely alienated from the political structure. Colonialism is really, really strong and alive in Puerto Rico. And the politicians have taken full advantage of that. We have a debt of $74 billion, caused primarily by the system and the political structure that exists in Puerto Rico.” PoliticalStrongTakenPoliticianOverwhelmingPuerto Rico Author:Oscar Lopez Rivera
“I am surprised at the number of Puerto Ricans that are moving out of Puerto Rico still. I thought that, by now, the immigration of Puerto Ricans had decreased a little bit. But, no, with a hurricane, it has increased even more. So, I see the financial institutions, especially the hedge funds, moving into Puerto Rico with all the - with all the force, knowing that their investments towards the future are going to be multiplied or probably elevated to quantities beyond any notion of how capital works.” MovingInvestmentFinancialImmigrationFundQuantityPuerto RicoMoving Out Author:Oscar Lopez Rivera
“I think that there are times when Puertoricans think, "Oh, we are blessed with the relationship with the U.S." But the end result will not be that. If Puerto Rico becomes similar to Hawaii - well, the Hawaiian Native population is about 9 percent. And if we go to the prisons, the overwhelming majority of the prisoners are the Natives. So I can anticipate that Puerto Ricans will not be better off by the annexation of the U.S. of Puerto Rico. I also know for a fact that once any nation or any people lose their identity, their language, their lifestyles, that they are a little dehumanized.” PeopleThinkingLanguageIdentityBlessedPrisonLifestyleNativePrisonerOverwhelmingPuerto Rico Author:Oscar Lopez Rivera
“I believe that the overwhelming majority of Puerto Rico wants to be Puerto Ricans. I have been in five different states in the United States, and I have found young Puerto Ricans in the states who really love Puerto Rico, who really want to do something for Puerto Rico. And for me, Puerto Rico has to be the promised land of all Puerto Ricans, whether we are in the United States or wherever we are at. But this has to be the promised land. Annexation will never be the answer.” BelieveDifferentI BelieveOverwhelmingPuerto Rico Author:Oscar Lopez Rivera
“For a long time I didn't want to accept that I was gay. Better said: I couldn't accept it because I was too afraid. Homosexuals were discriminated against in Puerto Rico back then, sometimes even killed. I had a friend named José, but we called him Linoshka because he was a transvestite. He was stabbed to death in the street at the age of 19 by a homophobe because he had taken part in a gay-pride parade.” LongSometimesAgeAcceptingTakenGayHomosexualPuerto Rico Author:Orlando Cruz
“Four years ago, I was fighting for the world championship title in Puerto Rico. The spectators bad-mouthed me; they called me a faggot. They told my opponent to pluck my feathers. In Puerto Rico, when you talk disparagingly about a gay man, you call him a duck. That's when I realized that something had to change.” MenWorldFightingGayI RealizedChampionshipFeathersGay MenPuerto Rico Author:Orlando Cruz
“I did not feel 'evil' when I wrote advertisements for Puerto Rico. They helped attract industry and tourists to a country which had been living on the edge of starvation for 400 years.” FeelsYearsCountryEvilEconomyIndustryEdgesStarvationTouristsLiving OnTourismAdvertisementsPuerto RicoRicoLiving On The Edge Author:David Ogilvy