Associated Press

On March 1, 1954, the Puerto Rican nationalists Lolita Lebron, Rafael Miranda, Irving Flores Rodriguez and Andres Figueroa Cordero entered the United States Capitol’s House of Representatives chamber and began firing at members of Congress, injuring five.

The March 2 New York Times reported that the nationalists “shouted for the freedom of their homeland as they fired murderously although at random from a spectators’ gallery just above the House floor. … House members at first thought the sounds were those of firecrackers. But as their colleagues fell or took cover as they heard the slugs hit around them, all realized what was happening.”



Particular attention was given to Ms. Lebron, who was dressed stylishly with high heels and bright red lipstick. “Piercing the confusion were the screams of the Puerto Rican woman: ‘Viva Puerto Rico!’ She emptied the chambers of a big Luger pistol, holding it in her two hands, and waving it wildly. Then she threw down the pistol and whipped out a Puerto Rican flag, which she waved but never did manage to unfurl fully.”

The four shooters were members of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party, an organization that called for full independence for Puerto Rico, which has been under United States control since the end of the Spanish-American War in 1898. The party often used violent means to advance its cause, including an assassination attempt on President Harry S. Truman in November 1950, months after he signed a bill allowing Puerto Rico to draft its own Constitution.

Puerto Rico adopted its Constitution in 1952 and became an unincorporated, organized territory of the United States with commonwealth status, which angered hardcore nationalists. Mr. Miranda said agreeing to these terms made Puerto Ricans looked like “happy slaves.” According to The Times’s obituary of Ms. Lebron, she had “dismissed that status as only more colonization and demanded complete independence.”

The Capitol attack was the last significant act of violence carried out by the Nationalist Party. The four shooters were given long sentences, but Mr. Cordero, who was battling cancer at the time, was released in 1978. The other three were released by President Jimmy Carter the following year in an effort to secure the release of American hostages in Cuba.

Connect to Today:

Puerto Rico remains a commonwealth, or unincorporated territory, of the United States. Puerto Ricans are American citizens who can serve in the United States military and vote in presidential primaries, but they do not have Congressional representation and cannot vote in presidential elections. The most recent plebiscite, or ballot vote, in 1998 revealed that, although many Puerto Ricans support independence, a much greater percentage seek statehood, and more than 50 percent of voters did not support either status.

In April 2010 the House approved another plebiscite and the President’s Commission on Puerto Rico’s Status released a March 2011 report that called for a plebiscite to be held in 2012 to determine whether Puerto Ricans want independence, statehood or commonwealth status.

In your opinion, what are the pros and cons of each proposed status for Puerto Rico? Which status do you support? What are your thoughts on the potential addition of Puerto Rico as the 51st state? Why?

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