Puerto Rico Forwar‪d‬ Democracy at Work

In Andrew's final episode of Puerto Rico Forward, he says that the initial objective of those who want to raise awareness about the PR issue cannot be to attain a certain political status but rather make PR’s colonial condition relevant within the US political system.

"No matter how small you see yourself, or how far this goal seems, never buy into the lie that you can’t change things. Be bold, be brave, and be persistent."

In this episode of the PRF Review, Andrew talks about a recent interview with PR congress people Raúl Grijalva, Nydua Velázquez and Joseé Serrano about the PRF status issue and makes an important announcement. 

Thank you everyone for your interest in and support of this show. We've been honored to work with Andrew over the last 2 years and he will be dearly missed. We wish him the best in all his future endeavors! Stay tuned for the next and last episode of PRF.

After 120 years of colonial dominance, Puerto Rico finds itself with less autonomy than it had at the end of the 19th century as a result of being a property of the US.

Sen. Sanders and Rep. Ocasio-Cortez signed a letter with other Democrats demanding the end of the Financial Oversight and Management Board's control over economic decisions of Puerto Rico. While the letter has some good points, Andrew discusses why it misses the mark.

Beyond the common arguments for Puerto Rico's statehood that touch on economic or security issues, there are human and civil rights violations as a basis to justify this claim. In this episode, Andrew takes a look at how PR's colonial status affects the human rights of it's population, and in particular on their ability to vote.

President Trump jokes about the possibility of trading Puerto Rico for Greenland. If this shocks you, host Andrew Mercado-Vázquez wants you to know that the US Government has already looked at the option, or at least has acknowledged the option, of ceding Puerto Rico to another nation state in a 2005 Presidential Task Force Report. That's part of the reality of Puerto Rico's colonial condition.