Vulture hedge funds bought this debt for cents on the dollar and are pushing austerity measures — fighting tooth and nail to ensure they extract every dollar they can from the island. They are literally killing the people of Puerto Rico.

One of the largest holders of our debt is Seth Klarman, of The Baupost Group. And, in the midst of the worst humanitarian crisis my island has ever seen, he refuses to let up. Klarman and The Baupost Group, poised to profit from our crisis, find our call to cancel the debt and put Puerto Ricans first to be “impractical.”

Puerto Ricans need to come first, not Wall Street vultures. Every dollar that goes to Wall Street vultures is a dollar taken away from saving lives in Puerto Rico. It is a dollar that does not go to my sister, who is literally fighting for her life as I write this.

Let’s be clear. This disaster is not natural. The devastation in Puerto Rico was caused by decades of Wall Street and hedge fund billionaires pushing austerity measures to suck profit from the island.

But now we are at a pivotal point for Puerto Rico. In order to stand with the people of Puerto Rico, our leaders must stand with us as we demand the immediate cancellation of Puerto Rico’s public debt, a moratorium on debt payments, and the creation of local jobs to rebuild our communities and develop a more equitable and clean energy economy.

Only then can Puerto Ricans have the the freedom to thrive.