Momma visited Puerto Rico briefly 19 years ago which started her interest in the small island, and a Puerto Rican co-worker gave her greater insight into the island's culture.
Puerto Rico has been an unincorporated territory of the United States since the end of the Spanish-American War in 1898.
Although Puerto Ricans were granted United States citizenship with the 1917 Jones–Shafroth Act, they still cannot vote for the President of the United States, and their foreign policies are subject to the United States Congress.
I'm sorry, but that's just wrong in my not-so-humble opinion.
A referendum on the political status of Puerto Rico was held in Puerto Rico on Nov. 6, 2012.
Puerto Rican voters were asked (1) whether they agreed to continue with Puerto Rico's territorial status and (2) asked to indicate the political status they preferred from three possibilities: statehood, independence, or a sovereign nation in free association with the United States.
Fifty-four percent of voters answered "No" to the first question, expressing themselves against maintaining the current political status.
On the second question, 805,155 (61.13 percent) voters chose statehood, 438,896 (33.32 percent) of the voters chose free association, 72,978 (5.54 percent) chose independence, and 470,032 voters left the second question blank.
Puerto Rico's non-voting Resident Commissioner, Pedro Pierluisi, has said that he will "defend the people's decision" in Washington, D.C. and that he will introduce legislation in Congress to admit Puerto Rico to the Union.
It has been 53 years since Alaska joined on Jan. 3, 1959 and Hawaii on Aug. 21, 1959. (Arizona joined 47 years before that on Feb. 14, 1912. Incidentally, there is a movement in southern Arizona to form a separate state.)
Just imagine, a new state after more than 50 years!
I wonder what the United States flag would look like with 51 stars....
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