Colonialism's Last Stand
The pattern hiding in plain sight: The United States, a nation founded on anti-colonial principles, has maintained colonial possessions for over a century, consistently framing their status in terms that benefit Washington. Puerto Rico is not an exception; it is a textbook example. THE CLAIM: Sovereignty is a contemporary issue driven by Puerto Rican desire. The Hill article implies that the
momentum for Puerto Rican sovereignty is a recent, organic development. While the desire for self-determination among Puerto Ricans is indeed powerful, the framing often overlooks the systemic reasons why this 'movement' gains prominence only when it aligns with shifting US geopolitical or economic interests. THE EVIDENCE: A legacy of imperial design. Puerto Rico became a US territory in 1898
following the Spanish-American War, a conflict that marked America's emergence as a global imperial power. The Treaty of Paris (1898) ceded Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Guam to the U.S., effectively transferring colonial ownership. The Insular Cases, a series of Supreme Court rulings between 1901 and 1922, cemented Puerto Rico's status as an 'unincorporated territory,' meaning its residents were U.S.
citizens (granted in 1917) but without full constitutional rights or representation in Congress. This legal framework established a permanent second-class status, allowing the U.S. to govern without full absorption or granting sovereign rights. The economic relationship, too, is decidedly colonial: Puerto Rico is subject to U.S. trade laws (like the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, known as the Jones