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Puerto Rico at the Olympics

Puerto Rico will compete in the 2012 Summer Olympics independently of the United States, as it has since 1948. The National Olympic Committee for Puerto Rico was recognized in 1948 by the International Olympic Committee.

How can Puerto Rico, a territory of the United States, have its own Olympic team? As it happens, the Olympics include quite a few entities that are not sovereign nations. For example, the International Olympic Committee recognized the U.S. Virgin Islands in 1967, Guam in 1986, and American Samoa in 1987.  The U.S. Olympic team does not object to the inclusion of Puerto Rico or these other U.S. territories as being included among “nations” competing in the the Olympic games.Read More »Puerto Rico at the Olympics

Bilingual Instruction Grows in Puerto Rico

Governor Fortuño is working toward a bold program of bilingual instruction in Puerto Rico’s schools, mandating coursework in both the island’s official languages for all courses except history. The program is currently in a dozen schools, and is expected to roll out into first grade classrooms in 31 more schools, reaching all of Puerto Rico’s public schools soon. The program’s stated goal is to reach full bilingualism among children in Puerto Rico by 2022.Read More »Bilingual Instruction Grows in Puerto Rico

Charlie Hernandez Suspended from the PDP

The Popular Democratic Party (PDP) has removed Representative Charlie Hernandez from his leadership posts for announcing his intention to vote for the “free association” option on the upcoming plebiscite.

There will be two questions on the ballot. First, voters will determine whether to continue in the current relationship Puerto Rico has with the United States. Puerto Rico is currently a territory of the United States. Voters are then asked which they would prefer: statehood, independence, or sovereign nationhood in free association with the United States.Read More »Charlie Hernandez Suspended from the PDP

Puerto Rico: Commonwealth or Territory?

Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States.  It has been a U.S. territory since 1898, when it was acquired from Spain after the Spanish-American War.

The Supreme Court has affirmed Puerto Rico’s status as a territory.  Presidents, senior administration officials in successive Republican and Democratic administrations, authoritative sources such as the Congressional Research Service (CRS) and Government Accountability Office (GAO), and Congress itself have consistently and repeatedly confirmed that Puerto Rico is a United States territory.Read More »Puerto Rico: Commonwealth or Territory?