r/InternationalNews • u/speakhyroglyphically • Nov 04 '24
Opinion/Analysis Americans excluded from the ballot: Puerto Ricans
28
u/speakhyroglyphically Nov 04 '24
Nov 4, 2024 - More than 3 million citizens living on the US island of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean don’t have the right to vote in the presidential election.
Several Puerto Ricans tell TRT World they feel like second-zone citizens and that the US treats this unincorporated territory as a possession where the population is disenfranchised.
They describe Puerto Rico as the world’s oldest colony, first ruled by Madrid, now by Washington and say the US government is breaking multiple international laws despite calls for autodetermination by UN experts.
Some demand independence from the US and say the island is being exploited while others want Puerto Rico to become the 51st state of the US and that residents benefit from the same rights as the rest of Americans.
25
u/MrCalPoly Nov 04 '24
Make Puerto Rico the 51st state or give them independence. E d taxation without representation, end 2nd class citizenship.
4
u/upsidedownbackwards Nov 05 '24
I'm not sure which would be better. If they became part of the US they would still be looked at as second class citizens, but with the right to vote. I see a lot of the natives being pushed to the worst areas as the rich take over the island state. Or worse, it could become another Florida.
But being their own country probably wouldnt go well either. The corruption there runs so strong, and so deep. They'd probably end up being slave wage labor for companies that deal in/with america.
I'm not saying that staying a weird possession-colony of the US is a good thing. I think the terms are pretty scummy. But I think they're also set up to fail as soon as they try to change things.
-4
u/ClockwiseServant Nov 05 '24
Puerto Ricans are not required to pay federal tax unlike the citizens in either of the 50 states
7
u/notarackbehind Nov 05 '24
Consequently, while all Puerto Rico residents pay federal taxes, many residents are not required to pay federal income taxes. Aside from income tax, U.S. federal taxes include customs taxes,[1] federal commodity taxes, and federal payroll taxes (Social Security, Medicare, and Unemployment taxes).
2
u/goonsquad4357 Nov 05 '24
What are you talking about? Puerto Ricans do not pay federal income tax buddy.
1
u/notarackbehind Nov 05 '24
Consequently, while all Puerto Rico residents pay federal taxes, many residents are not required to pay federal income taxes. Aside from income tax, U.S. federal taxes include customs taxes,[1] federal commodity taxes, and federal payroll taxes (Social Security, Medicare, and Unemployment taxes).
-1
u/goonsquad4357 Nov 06 '24
Yes, as I said, they do not pay federal income tax.
1
u/notarackbehind Nov 06 '24
And the guy you replied to never mentioned an income tax, he said taxation without representation.
It was actually a frequent argument of Tories that the American colonists had little to complain about, as they were taxed far less than domestic subjects.
-2
u/YeOleDirty Nov 04 '24
That’s not up to the US it’s up to Puerto Rico. They have to vote themselves in
18
u/Trick-Teach6867 Nov 05 '24
Again, no, they voted for statehood in 2020. That power absolutely is up to the federal government of the US. It is a colony. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_Puerto_Rican_status_referendum
Are you often wrong and confident or only in public?
4
u/Gildardo1583 Nov 05 '24
The is a episode of lady week tonight showing that the reason that the current US terrorist are not states is just pure racism. "Cant have brown people contaminate white America"..
5
2
Nov 05 '24
That's pretty messed up. Sounds like they're just being used as a testing ground for anything the us wants. Like subjects in a lab without their proper freedom. Are we that surprised though honestly? They're currently funding a genocide in the middle east, backing the oppressors and occupiers,who boast about being democratic depsute having an apartheid system (which is a contradiction to democracy entirely) and refuse to acknowledge it.. I hope the Puerto Ricans get their freedom. Just like I advocate for all civilians around the world.
2
Nov 05 '24
That's pretty messed up. Sounds like they're just being used as a testing ground for anything the us wants. Like subjects in a lab without their proper freedom. Are we that surprised though honestly? They're currently funding a genocide in the middle east, backing the oppressors and occupiers,who boast about being democratic depsute having an apartheid system (which is a contradiction to democracy entirely) and refuse to acknowledge it.. I hope the Puerto Ricans get their freedom. Just like I advocate for all civilians around the world
1
u/isitmeyou-relooking4 Nov 05 '24
!remindme 12 hours
1
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1
u/Red_Knight7 Nov 05 '24
Wasn't Trump unaware that they even had a responsibility to Puerto Rico when he was president? I can't remember exactly what happened.
They won't get accepted as a state and the us won't let them be independent without a fight I'm sure.
-11
u/Old_Plankton_6730 Nov 04 '24
The people can’t agree whether or not to become a state. It’s a matter voting to gain access to many federal benefits. This is a direct result of their unwillingness to become the 51st state. Independence or statehood?
15
u/Trick-Teach6867 Nov 05 '24
They won their referendum to seek statehood, the US federal government just doesn’t care. You should try to be as smart as you are loud
-4
u/Gildardo1583 Nov 05 '24
DC has also been wanting to be a state, but the Rs feel it won't help them in elections.
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