美国国家公共电台 NPR Puerto Ricans Reflect On A Century Of (Limited) Citizenship

 

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Puerto Rico today is marking an important anniversary. It's been a century since President Woodrow Wilson signed a law granting citizenship¹ to people born on the island, but it's a limited form of citizenship. It puts Puerto Rico under federal control, but doesn't allow the island voting representation in Congress. Residents also can't vote for president. From Puerto Rico, NPR's Greg Allen reports there's a new push to fix what many see as a deeply flawed relationship.

GREG ALLEN, BYLINE²: This is where the U.S. relationship with Puerto Rico began nearly 120 years ago during the Spanish-American War. In the town of Guanica, on the island's southwestern corner, Francisco Rodriguez, the local museum director, has brought us to the waterfront where the invasion began.

FRANCISCO RODRIGUEZ: (Through interpreter) American troops commanded by General Nelson Miles landed here on July 25, 1898.

ALLEN: Rodriguez proudly shows visitors a stone marker engraved³ by the 3rd Battalion⁴ of the U.S. Army. Nearly 19 years after the invasion, Congress passed the Jones–Shafroth Act, a law making all citizens of Puerto Rico also citizens of the U.S. That law started a debate over what exactly the island's relationship with the U.S. should be. For decades, there have been three basic positions - statehood, independence and the status quo or commonwealth⁵ status, each represented by a political party. But there is something nearly all Puerto Ricans agree on.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

RICARDO ROSSELLO: Regardless of what ideological⁶ twist people may have, about 90 to 95 percent of our population really values our citizenship. It's of utmost importance.

ALLEN: Puerto Rico's governor Ricardo Rossello says one of the reasons Puerto Ricans treasure U.S. citizenship is that it allows them to travel freely to the mainland. Rossello with Puerto Rico's Statehood Party says that's the good side of it, being part of the U.S.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ROSSELLO: The bad side of it is that we are not a full part of the United States. We're a territory or a colonial territory. I'd want Puerto Rico to become the 51st state of the nation.

ALLEN: Today the question of Puerto Rico's status is one debated on the campaign trail. But over the last century, the push for Puerto Rican independence several times led to violence including a presidential assassination⁷ attempt and later in 1954, an attack on Congress.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Three men and a woman believed to be members of the Puerto Rican nationalist gang, that in November 1950 attempted the assassination of President Truman opened fire from the visitors gallery of the House of Representatives.

ALLEN: Support for outright⁸ independence has declined on the island since then, as Puerto Rico has struggled with a financial crisis. Supporters also declined at least among elected officials for maintaining the status quo.

Manuel Natal⁹ serves in Puerto Rico's House of Representatives with a party that's long supported the current commonwealth status. He worries statehood would force Puerto Ricans to give up things they've long treasured.

MANUEL NATAL ALBELO: We can talk about language, our culture identity. We can give plenty of examples of things that are important to the people of Puerto Rico on day to day. And we are not sure how we would come about if the statehood was a reality.

ALLEN: Natal supports a political status called free association. That would enable Puerto Rico to maintain its close relationship with the U.S. while at the same time allowing the island autonomy to make its own trade deals.

He thinks Congress might find free association more acceptable than statehood. In part, that's because statehood would grant Puerto Rico two U.S. senators and as many as five House members. And Natal says with President Trump's pledge to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, he doesn't see Washington welcoming a state where Spanish is the first language.

NATAL: I'm a Puerto Rican citizen, a U.S. citizen with a thick accent. I understand what's going on there, and I know that the statehood is not a possibility.

ALLEN: In June, Puerto Ricans will go to the polls to choose between statehood or a second option either independence or free association. Most people in Guanica support statehood, according to museum director Francisco Rodriguez. In part, that's because of the town's historical connection to the U.S. and the monument that marks the invasion.

RODRIGUEZ: (Through interpreter) It's a symbol of pride. Puerto Rico lacks resources, but that's not the fault of the U.S.

ALLEN: Rodriguez says members of the island's independence movement come to Guanica each year to protest. This is a place that for many here symbolizes¹⁰ colonialism and a century-long dysfunctional relationship with the U.S. Greg Allen, NPR News, Guanica, Puerto Rico.

1 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 engraved   

v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的过去式和过去分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中）

参考例句：

• The silver cup was engraved with his name. 银杯上刻有他的名字。
• It was prettily engraved with flowers on the back. 此件雕刻精美，背面有花饰图案。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 battalion   

n.营；部队；大队(的人)

参考例句：

• The town was garrisoned by a battalion.该镇由一营士兵驻守。
• At the end of the drill parade,the battalion fell out.操练之后，队伍解散了。

5 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

6 ideological   

a.意识形态的

参考例句：

• He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
• He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。

7 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

8 outright   

adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的

参考例句：

• If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事，你应该直率地对我说。
• You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。

9 natal   

adj.出生的，先天的

参考例句：

• Many music-lovers make pilgrimages to Mozart's natal place.很多爱好音乐的人去访问莫扎特的出生地。
• Since natal day,characters possess the visual elements such as dots and strokes.文字从诞生开始便具有了点画这样的视觉元素。

10 symbolizes   

v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The use of light and dark symbolizes good and evil. 用光明与黑暗来象征善与恶。
• She likes olive because It'symbolizes peace. 她喜欢橄榄色因为它象征着和平。 来自《简明英汉词典》