Crisis
1923-1946
In many ways, this period was defined by various crisis and turbulent events. To be sure, generalized acute poverty and the Great Depression exponentially exacerbated a local chronic economic crisis, prompting some Puerto Ricans to seek solutions via a change in Puerto Rico’s political status. Amidst this crisis, Puerto Rican nationalists challenged U.S. hegemony and at times prompted armed intervention in order to pursue independence. In addition, during this period, Congress began enacting legislation conferring birthright citizenship on persons born in Puerto Rico, effectively treating the Puerto Rican archipelago as a permanent part of the United States. Then of course the U.S. entry into World War II became a key factor informing some debates over the future status of Puerto Rico within the U.S. empire.
Economic Crisis
The collapse of the U.S. economy in 1929 created a significant crisis in Puerto Rico. The Great Depression was a destabilizing force locally, prompting some local leaders to look at a change in Puerto Rico’s political status as a solution to the crisis. Some local leaders believed that statehood would enable the U.S. to gain more resources available to states in order to respond to the local economic crisis.
Nationalist Crisis
Debates over Puerto Rico’s political status were also mired by the nationalist protests of the period, which in turn drew on the economic crisis to challenge U.S. imperialism. In fact, a large amount of status legislation introduced during the 1930s directly responds to the political arguments made by Don Pedro Albizu Campos and his nationalist challenge to the U.S. Empire. Specifically, the status legislation introduced by Representative Vito Marcantonio (NY-AL) echoes the nationalist arguments of the period. Alternatively, other punitive related legislation sought to respond to the growing nationalist challenge. Eventually, New Deal federal funding and a military economy gave some level of stability to the political scenario that was instrumental in the creation of the Commonwealth arrangement in the 1950-1952 political process.
Citizenship
In 1934 Congress began to enact legislation for Puerto Rico providing for a territorial form of citizenship at birth. The Nationality Act of 1940 began to treat Puerto Rico as “part” of the United States for the sole purpose of extending birthright citizenship to persons born in Puerto Rico. Congress anchored this statutory citizenship on the 14th Amendment in order to affirm the permanent membership of its bearers within the U.S. Empire without incorporating or changing Puerto Rico’s territorial status.
World War II
Debates over the strategic location of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean (and Latin America) shaped U.S. policy towards the island during the War years. Concerns over Nazi expansion to Latin America, the need for strategic naval bases and the concern with protecting the Panama Canal, shaped the contours of the U.S. military strategy over Puerto Rico and informed debates over the future status of the islands. The geopolitical value of Puerto Rico’s Caribbean location was extremely important as well as the creation of an extensive system of military bases across the Island. In From Winship to Lehy, Jorge Rodriguez Beruff argues that World War II shaped the relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States in two crucial ways. On the one hand, the war increased the need for political stability in Puerto Rico in order to protect the strategic defense of the Caribbean. On the other hand, the early preparations for war in Puerto Rico enabled the United States to modify its prevailing “colonial” model of administering the Puerto Rican islands and transition to a more “modern” imperial arrangement.
The war economy, with its huge state structure and military expenditures, Rodriguez-Beruff further argues, enabled Puerto Rico’s transition from a declining sugar-dominated economy developed during the early phase of American rule, to the industry-led growth of the 1950s. The national administrative state, which grew substantially during the 1930s, mainly in the form of huge federal relief agencies like the Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration (PRRA), shifted its priorities to war preparations. Bureaucracies such as the Works Progress Administration (WPA), Rodriguez-Beruff notes, rapidly expanded, becoming major sources of investment and employment. The U.S. armed forces also absorbed tens of thousands of workers that the Puerto Rican economy would have been unable to employ. The economic transformation of Puerto Rico opened the door for the expansion of Puerto Rican administrative autonomy over local affairs, a transformation that led to the subsequent enactment of the Elective Governor Act of 1947 and the Estado Libre Asociado (ELA) in 1952.
Political Parties and Ideologies in Puerto Rico
The partisan political landscape during this period is complex and fluid. Suffice it to say that traditional political parties were imploding, new political parties were emerging, and multiple political parties engaged in alliances and coalitions. Notwithstanding, at the end of the day, the dominant political map largely echoed two dominant alliances or coalitions of parties, each embracing either autonomy or degrees of independence on the one hand, and statehood on the other. To this extent, despite the plurality of political parties shaping the local debates, at a federal level, debates were largely split between two camps.
Congress and the Question of Puerto Rico’s Political Status
68th Congress (1923-1925)
Two organic act bills were introduced during the 68th Congress. S. 913 and H.R. 3910 were organic acts that treated Puerto Rico like an incorporated territory. Lawmakers during the 68th Congress did not enact any legislation changing Puerto Rico’s territorial status.
See 68th Bills70th Congress (1927-1929)
Only one bill was introduced in the 70th Congress. This status bill, H.R. 9847, provided for the creation of an autonomic government for Puerto Rico. This is the earliest bill introduced in Congress calling for a local Constitutional Convention. The 70th Congress did not enact any status changing legislation for Puerto Rico.
See 70th Bills73rd Congress (1933-1934)
Only one bill was introduced during the 73rd Congress. H.R. 9831, a status bill, advocated for Statehood. The 73rd congress did not enact any status changing legislation for Puerto Rico.
See 73rd Bills74th Congress (1935-1936)
Four bills were introduced during the 74th Congress. Two were status legislation, but whereas H.R. 1394 provided for statehood, H.R. 12611 sought independence. One bill, H.R. 1393, was an Organic Act Amendment with a provision for statehood. The fourth bill, S. 4529, provided for a referendum on independence. The 74th Congress did not enact any status changing legislation for Puerto Rico.
See 74th Bills75th Congress (1937-1938)
Two bills were introduced in the 75th Congress. One status bill, H.R. 1992, provided for the territorial incorporation of Puerto Rico. The other bill, H.R. 4885, was a referendum legislation which included a provision for independence. The 75th Congress did not enact any status changing legislation for Puerto Rico.
See 75th Bills76th Congress (1939-1940)
Six bills were introduced in the 76th Congress. Five of these bills, H.R. 147, H.R. 6986/S.2780, H.R.7117 and H.R. 9361, were single status bills. The sixth bill, H.R. 9361, was an organic act providing for a greater degree of home rule. The 76th Congress did not enact any status changing legislation for Puerto Rico.
See 76th Bills77th Congress (1941-1942)
Only one status bill was introduced in the 77th Congress, H.R. 7352. It was an organic act, with a provision for a greater degree of self-government. The 77th Congress did not enact any status changing legislation for Puerto Rico.
See 77th Bills78th Congress (1943-1945)
Four bills were introduced in the 78th Congress. All bills, S. 732, S. 952, H.R. 2989 and H.R. 3002 were status bills each providing for a variety of status options for Puerto Rico. The 78th Congress did not enact any status changing legislation for Puerto Rico.
See 78th Bills79th Congress (1945-1946)
Five bills were introduced in the 79th Congress. Three bills, S. 227, H.R. 2781 and S. 1485 were status bills providing for either independence or statehood for Puerto Rico. Alternative, two companion bills, S. 1002/H.R. 3237, provided for a plebiscite with multiple status options. It is important to highlight that the so-called Tydings-Piñero Bill (S. 1002/H.R. 3237) provided one of the more comprehensive status legislation of this history and offered viable alternatives to the status quo. The 79th Congress did not enact any status changing legislation for Puerto Rico.
See 79th Bills