Puerto Rican MigrationIntroduction•greater Antilles - puerto rico, cuba, Hispaniola, jamaica•mostly third wave (1920- present)An "In- between" status•U.S. citizens- congressional representatives; no voting- subject to the draft- can't vote in federal elections•race- spanish - africanSpanish Colonial Puerto Rico•1493- columbus•native population- forced labor; decimated•west african slaves•1897- autonomy from Spain•1898- Spanish American War•Treaty of Paris (1898)- Spain ceded Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines to the U.S.- Ratified in 1899•Building an empireU.S. Citizenship•Gonzalez vs. Williams (1904)•Isabel Gonzalez- pregnant puerto rican women tried to enter the U.S. but was refused.•question of citizenship for all Puerto Ricans•Court ruled she was not an alien•didn't make a decision on citizenship for Puerto Ricans•Insular casesPuerto Rico as a U.S. Territory•U.S.- appointed governors•English required in schools•The Jones Act (1917)- Citizenship- Military draft- jobs in U.S. factories•1948- Puerto Ricans began electing governors•1952- Commonwealth status- run their own schools-make legal codes- elect their own governorsEconomic Issues•early 1900- mostly small Puerto Rican- owned farms•Industrial Incentives Act of 1947 ( Operation Bootstrap)- industrialized- high income taxes, destroyed local farmers•late 1940s- 1950s- largest migration- cheaper air travel- searching for jobsLocation and Population•1920s- present•New York City- Spanish Harlem•1950s- 250,000 Puerto Rican in New York •1956- 577,000•the garment industry and manufactureReturn Migration•1970s- U.S. recession•Migration back to Puerto Rico•return migration- revolving door•today, almost equal numbers in Puerto Rico and the mainlandWest Side Story•Best Picture (1961), 2nd highest grossing movie•academy awards, etc.West Side Story Background•updated Romeo and Juliet•''White'' gang vs Puerto Rican gang•based on Stereotypes•originally planned as a Jewish- Catholic conflictWWS Creators•a collaborators, all jewish •inspired by Mexican gangs n L.A.•No knowledge of Puerto Rican culture•1957- Broadway play; very successful•wanted it to be set in New York City so they chose to use Puerto RicansThe Film (1961) and skin color•white actors in brown make-up•skin tone stereotypes•later productions still used brown make-up•Critics originally praised the sympathetic treatment of and interracial relationship''America'' and stereotypes•juvenile delinquents, criminals•overly sexual •hot-blooded, argumentative•men:- Macho, bullfighters- Animal sexuality- proud of heritage•women:- flirts, sexual, emotional- materialistic, superficial - money over heritagePuerto Rican Reactions to WWS•at the time, seemed radical to some•mixed reactions in Puerto Rican newspaper•Recent decades- critical analysis by scholars- Francis Negron- Muntaner- Alberto Sandoval- SanchezConclusions•U.S. citizens; don't have al of the privileges•biggest migration period- mid 1940's- Early 1960s•West Side Story- influenced perceptions, stereotypes•recent decades- attempts at more accurate representations - documentaries - news
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