Black history in Puerto Rico
This is an article about
black history in Puerto Rico, a
Caribbean island with a significant percentage of black people.
Before Christopher Columbus
\nTaíno Indians inhabited Puerto Rico before Christopher Columbus discovered the island, with Puerto Rico becoming a Spanish territory soon after. There is some evidence that Africans in Mali may have been trading with Caribbean Amerindians and Brazilian Natives before the arrival of the Europeans in the "New World". Thousands of Native American words match the language of the West African groups. Also, the lightness of the wooden materials used in West African boatmaking allowed them to withstand the treacherous waves and storms of the Atlantic Ocean. The wind currents upon which hurricanes tended to follow ("Hurricane Alley") may have been a natural push for these early African voyagers.
After Christopher Columbus
\nSoon after the Spanish took over Puerto Rico (and the rest of Latin America), they began to sell slaves to rich, Spanish farm or land owners who came over from Spain to all of Latin America. Many of the slaves who came to Puerto Rico were from Congo (Mayombe religions such as "Palo Monte were an intrinsic part of Puerto Rico's early spiritualist history before Allen Kardec), others were members of the Ashanti tribe. 31 known African tribes were brought to the island from Central and West Africa. It is believed that many slaves entered Puerto Rico through the island's east side, hence the large population of blacks from San Juan to Vieques. Ponce and Mayaguez have large populations that came from Cuba, Haiti and Colombia. During the years of Indigenous and African slavery, miscenegation was rampant. Tainos were raped by Spaniards and intermarried with the incoming Africans.
In Puerto Rico, like in many other countries, slave-owners would insult black workers and make them work under poor working conditions and for little money. They would abuse them physically too, sometimes injuring them or killing them. Some slave owners also would rape black women and girls, including wifes of the slaves. These types of abuses, of which most Puerto Ricans born during the 20th century had little knowledge about, were exposed in many of Abelardo Diaz Alfaro's books written during the 1940s. Diaz Alfaro opposed racism.
Just like in most countries where slaves were brought over from Africa, in Puerto Rico, slaves got assigned new last names, in Spanish. Slaves usually got their owner's last names, passing the adopted last names to their children and so on.
Many slaves worked in sugarcane fields, others in manufacturers or other types of jobs. \n \nIn the mid 1800's there were many Spanish creoles, mestizos and freed "people of color" who developed a social consience in regard to slavery. They were called Abolitionists. Among them were, Ramon Emeterio Betances- himself a mulatto,Segundo Ruiz Belvis, Eugenio Maria de Hostos, Arturo Alfonso Schomburg (Schomburg was half German) and Lola Rodríguez de Tió. Betances even formed a secret society which helped many slaves gain their freedom.
On March 22, 1873, a law proclaiming the abolition of slavery in Puerto Rico was passed.
Modern society
\nThe term Negro(a) or Negrito(a), which means small black person, originated during the African slave trade and was used to decribe a person of visible African descent (ie. Negro Jose or Negra Maria). Today the word has lost its negative connotations and is often applied to another as a term of endearment regardless of their background. In 2003, Puerto Rico was genetically defined by several major DNA studies done at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez to have 61% Taino, 27% African, and 12% European ancestry through matrilineal lines. This was due to the fact that the Spanish Conquest was mostly male and the Spaniard and Moorish men who accompanied Christopher Columbus came into the Caribbean's "New World" to take their share of gold and "exotic" native women. The Spaniards also abused the enslaved African women without mercy as well. While some had consented marriages, the majority did not. Hence the birth of Puerto Rico as a people was a painful one brought about by the Spaniards' virulent quest for gold and glory. "Race" could no longer be defined clearly as the various populations became blended to the point of social obscurity. The Spanish culture dominated all aspects of island life. Taino culture disappeared into the conquering culture as did the African one. They were overshadowed and relegated to the backburners of Puerto Rican society until today. As Puerto Rican culture moves towards a better understanding of itself and what it means to be Puerto Rican, confidence and pride is shown towards its original roots than ever before.
Today, racism has not really taken a foothold amongst the populace as it had in the U.S. though the American influence has brought a greater awareness of skin tones. Given the historical awareness Puerto Ricans have had of their own nation, the "cultural guards" will always remain up. Children in Puerto Rican schools are taught about by Puerto Rican teachers the three main "races" that they are composed of from the time they first enter kindergarten, and most public residential areas feature famous statues and murals of Taino, African and Spanish celebrities. Neighborhoods in Puerto Rico are often populated by groups of people who become united as they get to know each other, and it is not uncommon to see blacks, brown-skinned, mestizos, and even Chinese sharing together in neighborhood parties or talking.
Most Puerto Ricans enjoy Salsa music, a musical blend of African and Caribbean rhythms developed by Cubans and Puerto Ricans who came up together in the streets of New York. Salsa was imported back into Puerto Rico and Cuba as "popular"' music in the 30's, 40's and 50's. On the island of Puerto Rico, Bomba (from Loiza, Mayaguez and Ponce), which has origins in Ghana, West Africa, had always been one of the major forms of music enjoyed by all Puerto Ricans. The Taino-Spanish influence (also included in Salsa and evidenced by the use of the "clave" and the "maracas" as integral musical instruments) comes from the mountain regions where the last vestiges of Taino culture stood out the longest. Plena (which many say came from Barrio San Anton in Ponce) is another major form which probably came from the English-speaking African immigrants who arrived from the British Caribbean islands through the island's Southern ports at the beginning of the 20th Century. "Reggaeton", a form of music which blends Puerto Rican Bomba with Jamaican Reggae rhythms, has also entered the popular Puerto Rican musical arena.
Although many black Puerto Ricans live in poor residential areas, many others have progressed and are able to live comfortably. Still, at least 2/3rds of all Puerto Ricans live on public assistance- a sign of continued American Imperialistic domination in Puerto Rico. Among the towns with the largest black populations in Puerto Rico, apart from San Juan and Vieques, are Loíza, Loíza Aldea, Canovanas, Carolina, Fajardo, Ponce and Mayaguez. Other cities, such as Caguas and Bayamon also have significant numbers of black residents.
List of significant black Puerto Ricans
\n*Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos, the Puerto Rican symbol of Identity and Freedom.\n*Wilfred Benitez, three time world boxing champion, youngest world champion in boxing history.\n*Jose Campeche\n*Bobby Capo\n*Roberto Clemente, only Puerto Rican to reach 3,000 hits in MLB baseball history.\n*Carlitos Colon, former WWE wrestler\n*Santitos Colon, former mayor of Cabo Rojo, and first Puerto Rican to win an election as an independent candidate.\n*Rafael Cordero, educator who set up a school for children of all races.\n*Eva Cruz, volleyball player.\n*Tite Curet Alonso, composer\n*Rafael Jose Diaz\n*Maria Falcon, television host.\n*Ruth Fernandez, international singer.\n*Rafael Hernandez, composer that wrote La Borinquena.\n*Jerome Mincy, basketball player.\n*Juan Morel Campos, composer\n*Pedro Rosa Nales, television reporter.\n*Isabel la Negra, infamous female gangster\n*Victor Santos, owner of the Miss Piel Canela (Miss Cinnamon skin) beauty contest franchise.\n*Pedro Telemaco, first black to star in a Puerto Rican telenovela.\n*Felix Trinidad, world boxing champion.\n*Arturo Alfonso Schomburg, educator and black historian\n*Otilio Warrington, better known as Bizcocho, popular television comedian.
For more on Famous Puerto Ricans click here:List of Puerto Ricans
