Journal Entry

Puerto Rico remained under Spanish control until 1898, but in the 1540’s, Spain discovered silver mines in Mexico and Peru. Puerto Rico was virtually abandoned, becoming a frontier zone. However, both the Spanish oppression and this new development resulted in the development of a kind of counter culture among the peasant population of Puerto Rico. Forced into labor, the peasants developed a passive, evasive attitude toward Spanish control. (Figueroa 9/24) A reflection of this can be seen in Francisco de Valle Atiles’s article "The Spiritual Life of the Jíbaro". According to Valle Atiles, "The speech of the peasant has the imperfections of those who never had any education; he still uses words that modern Spanish has forgotten, and the impurity and barbarism of his language are notorious. (Valle Atiles 95)" This describes the essence of the Puerto Rican peasant: poor, uneducated, and deemed inferior by his Spanish oppressors. However, the Puerto Rican peasants had pride in their own culture, and did their best to survive despite their oppressed status. They refused to be controlled by the Spaniards, even to the point of escaping the areas of the island most heavily developed by Spain and living in the uninhabited area.

Two other aspects of the Spanish and Puerto Rican culture are their governments and food. Spain and Puerto Rico have two different types of government. Spain’s government has both a parliamentary government and constitutional monarchy (Pena, 2012). Puerto Rica happens to be a commonwealth island of the United States (Puerto Rico, 2012). The influence on food found within Spain and Puerto Rico comes from many different backgrounds. Spain’s food background is influenced by the Roman, Greek, Celtic, Jewish, and Muslim backgrounds (Pena, 2012). Puerto Rican food comes from the influences of the Taino Indian, Spanish, African, and U.S. American peoples. Not only can similarities be found with the family unit, religion, and traditions. They are also found within the government and food within the countries.

You can eat at American restaurants in both places. As well as eating Spanish food. Puerto Ricans are born citizens of the United States. There are no green cards or visas required. In P.R., you can drink and gamble at the age of eighteen. Sales tax is seven percent and they do not pay federal income tax.

Puerto Rico has variety of Spanish food that make you go there. Puerto Rico’s food is one of the best reasons to visit the island. It is diverse, rich, and flavorful with a combination of rice, beans, meat and fish fried. Puerto Rico cooking is somewhat similar to both Spanish and other Hispanic cuisines. It’s

The communal nature of Latinos is represented by the use of food in the culture, sharing and offering food to guests is important and often relates to the holidays that Latino’s often celebrate.

Since the nineteenth century Puerto Ricans have been caught in the cross-streams of two cultures,

Visiting and keeping in touch with one another is more of an obligation in Puerto Rican culture and failing to do so could lead to harsh feelings. It is also considered offensive to turn down a meal or gift from an individual.

I come from a place where patriotism runs through its citizen’s veins and where people face situations together, as the big community they are. In this place people are known to be loud and when someone has an issue, it becomes everyone’s issue. Puerto Rico may be relatively small in size, but big in its heart. Some people may argue that the heart of Puerto Rico is found on its people; while I debate that the heart of my beautiful island does not lie solemnly on its people, but on its cultural identity.

In Reproducing Empire, Laura Briggs provides her readers with a very thorough history of the mainland U.S. and Puerto Rican discourses and its authors surrounding Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans, from Puerto Rico's formation in the mainland elite's "mind" as a model U.S. (not) colony in 1898* to its present status as semi-autonomous U.S.

Puerto Rico held many of my most cherished childhood memories. The 3 years my family spent there were some of the best years of my life. I remember the day we arrived there and settled into a hotel to live temporarily. I wasn’t sure why I couldn’t understand my favorite cartoons anymore. A man with a daughter my age took me to school during the first week and I couldn’t understand that man either. My parents explained to me that they spoke Spanish and soon enough in school, I was learning the language.

The United States gained Puerto Rico in 1898 through the Treaty of Paris, signed after the Spanish-American. Although the Puerto Rican community initially embraced U.S. intervention in 1898, hoping that the land of the free would finally bring liberty to the island, the following years were full of disillusionment. The sad reality was that the U.S. had no intention of ever giving up control of Puerto Rico because of its strategic location in the Caribbean. The United States government tried to Americanize the island. Which was acceptable for the island in the eyes of the elite until their power was being threatened. The elite’s on the island looked to the Jibaro as their symbol of national identity.

Officially known as the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory of the United States of America situated in the

Puerto Rico is smallest and Eastern of the Greater Antilles. The north of Venezuela has left approximately to 500 miles, 80 miles to the east of the Spanish, and to 1.200 miles to the Southeastern of the city of Miami, in the North American state of Florida. The U.S.A.

The migration of Puerto Ricans to the United States occurred in two major waves. The first wave was in the 1910s-1940s and the second wave was from the 1960s to the 1990s. Each wave of migrants brought new generations of Puerto Ricans to the United States. Both waves of migrants believed that they were going to live a better life in America and migrated to major cities such as New York City, Chicago, Hartford, etc. The early migrants looked for industrial jobs such as in cigar factories while the later migrants found agricultural work such as in tobacco fields. The communities in which they lived grew larger and larger due to chain migration and because of this, the need for politics evolved.

As we know, Puerto Rico was a colony of Spain "found" by Christopher Columbus on November 19, 1493, and remained a colony of Spain for the next 400 years. But the interesting fact remains that Puerto Rico was not truly settled by the Spaniards until almost fifteen years later! In 1508, Juan Ponce de Leon came to settle the land of Borinken, and founded the town of Caparra. This was the start of a proud people that would