Huge Puerto Rican Day Parade raises issue of political
prisoners
By
Vanessa Lewis
New York
Three million Puerto Ricans and their supporters lined Fifth
Avenue June 13 for the 42nd annual Puerto Rican Day Parade. The
event is a must for this oppressed nationality, whose largest
concentration is in New York.
For the first time, the parade this year was dedicated in
part to the Puerto Rican political prisoners. This has long
been a demand of the Pro-Libertad amnesty campaign and the
National Committee to Free Puerto Rican Political
Prisoners.
There are 16 Puerto Rican political prisoners. Fifteen are
fighters for Puerto Rico's independence who have been
imprisoned for the last 19 years on charges of seditious
conspiracy for which there was no evidence. In March another
independentista, Dr. Jose Solis Jordon, was added to the list
when he was charged with four counts of conspiracy.
Right-wingers like New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani were
upset by the dedication. "I don't agree that people who engage
in violent acts that they allege are political should be let
out of prison," he said.
A "free the political prisoners" contingent in the parade
led by Pro-Libertad and the National Committee was joined by a
200-strong delegation of the Almighty Latin King and Queen
Nation, a delegation from the Puerto Rico Collective, the
Vieques Support Campaign, the Puerto Rican Independence Party
and members of Workers World Party. The contingent was very
well received by the crowd.
Tens of thousands of leaflets and bro chures, including
information on African American political prisoner Mumia
Abu-Jamal, were given out. Countless people signed petitions
demanding the Puerto Rican prisoners be released.
Many participants were anxious to hear about the island of
Vieques. A struggle is taking place there to remove the U.S.
Navy--which killed one Puerto Rican and wounded four others on
May 19 while conducting training exercises connected to the air
war against Yugoslavia. Puerto Rican activists are now
occupying an area of the U.S. Navy-controlled zone.
Protesters are also condemning the high rate of cancer on
the island, which they attribute to years of military
operations that have introduced toxic substances into the
environment.
The growing mood of rebellion in the Puerto Rican community
was also reflected at the parade by the presence of the Latino
Officers Association, which had sued the New York Police
Department in order to march in uniform. They have stood with
the community in the struggle against police brutality,
especially after the police murder of Anthony Baez. The
association provided security for members of the Baez family
threatened by other officers.
The group was made to march behind the officially-recognized
Latino fraternal organization of the NYPD, the Hispanic
Society, which has supported openly racist politicians like
Giuliani.
More than just pride
Abundant solidarity with and by the Puerto Rican community
was expressed by numerous Black Liberation flags, held by
Puerto Ricans and many African Americans, as well as by
Mexicans and Dominicans. Many parade-goers were excited by the
appearance of rap artist/producer Sean "Puffy" Combs, also
known as Puff Daddy.
News coverage of the day said little about the political
prisoners, Vieques, or any of the issues affecting Puerto Rican
people on the island or in the United States. The media
reported mostly about Puerto Rican pride.
Culture and national identity were for certain an abundant
and driving force in the day's festivities. However, workers
wearing shirts reading "100% pure Boricua" were also
celebrating a 100-year-old struggle against U.S.
colonialism.
The United States has attempted to demolish this nation in
many ways, first and foremost through annihilating its culture.
The parade this year, for the 42nd time, showed it has not
succeeded.
This article is copyright under a Creative Commons License.
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