Nacionalistas en NY celebran natalicio de Albizu Campos : CMI-PR

Artist: Carlos Laster, Desintegración, 2002, 48" X 68", Acrylic on Canvas, Private Collection September 12th, 2003 Bronx, N.Y. In the Bronx, NY on Friday night, scores of people turned out to commemorate the birth date of the late Puerto Rican Nationalist leader Pedro Albizu Campos. Sponsored by the New York committee of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party, the event drew from musicians, artists, activists, professors, and even a reverend in order to make a successful and vibrant cultural/political event. The event was held in the Nationalist Party’s new Bronx digs, beginning with an exhibition of art depicting the life and events surrounding Pedro Albizu Campos. The artwork hung on the walls of the center as event-goers and supporters admired the paintings produced by talented local Puerto Rican artists. These painting commemorated “Don Pedro”, as he is warmly called by supporters. One painting highlighted the 1954 shooting in Congress by four Nationalists in an effort to call attention to the need for Puerto Rican independence. Other paintings showcased the colors and beauty of the Puerto Rican flag and of the authority and majestic presence of Albizu Campos. Los Pleneros de la 21 kicked off the official event by playing plena and bomba, traditional Puerto Rican music. The infectious rhythms of the drums and singing brought many to their feet, dancing. Hunter College professor Jose Manuel Torres Santiago was the keynote speaker for the evening and gave an incredibly detailed extemporaneous account of the life of Pedro Albizu Campos. Born in 1891, Albizu Campos did not attend school until the age of 12. He asked his grandmother to enroll him in school but her reply was that young men of color did not go to school. He then enrolled himself in school and impressed many of his teachers by completing all his requirements within 4 years. Eventually, he was given a scholarship to the University of Vermont. He so impressed his professors there that he was invited to attend Harvard. Upon arriving in Harvard, he became cause celebre overnight: here was this dark-skinned Puerto Rican speaking English, involved in the debate team, studying Chemical Engineering, meeting figures of the Indian independence movement, the Cuban independence movement (helped write the Cuban constitution of 1940), Irish republican movement (helping to write the Irish Republic's constitution with De Valera), and generally excelling in his studies. Albizu was offered jobs in the State Department and a range of other potentially important jobs. He turned them all down because he said, his destiny had already been written. He had already solidified his commitment to the independence of Puerto Rico. He graduated from Harvard with degrees in Chemical Engineering and degrees in Law, among many others, and spoke seven languages. He returned to Puerto Rico and became President of the Nationalist Party in 1930 and instantly electrified the movement. His call for direct action and confrontation against the American occupation of Puerto Rico was heeded all over the island as throngs joined the Party and support for independence was overwhelming. The years that followed were characterized by ongoing battles between the insular police, their appointed American military governors, and the Nationalists. As young Nationalists were murdered by the police, the Party responded by assassinating the Chief of Police, Francis Riggs. Albizu Campos was arrested as charged with attempting to overthrow the government of the United States in Puerto Rico. His first trial (consisting of 7 Puerto Ricans and 5 Americans) deadlocked. His second trial immediately followed and the jury (10 Americans and 2 Puerto Ricans) swiftly convicted him and he then served 10 years in federal prison. The armed conflict continued while he was imprisoned, but came to a climax after he returned. In 1950, while Congress and the local Puerto Rican legislature negotiated instituting the “Commonwealth” system of government and a new Constitution, Puerto Rican Nationalists all over the island erupted in open revolt, taking over several towns and fighting the insular forces. Blanca Canales, a woman, is now revered for then making the proclamation of Puerto Rican independence from the United States in the town of Jayuya. Over 3,000 people were arrested (most of them innocent) and the town of Jayuya was strafed and bombed in the process of putting down the rebellion. In 1954, Nationalists attacked Congress, desperate to call international attention to the ongoing colonial situation of Puerto Rico. Don Pedro served most of the rest of his life in prison. He died in 1965, half-paralyzed and unable to speak after a stroke which was undoubtedly caused by radiation torture practices on the part of prison officials. He passed away in the hospital after an international outcry from all over the world that demanded his release from prison. Professor Jose Manuel Torres Santiago of Hunter College received a standing ovation after his descriptive and brilliant narrative of the life of Pedro Albizu Campos. This was followed by a blessing of the new Center being used by the NY Committee of the Nationalist Party. Reverend Luis Barrios led the induction and blessing ceremony for the center called “El Maestro”, or Teacher, as Albizu was often called. Fr. Barrios encouraged everyone to take part in this blessing and noted that while there are many who would kill for a cause, there are few who would be killed for a cause, highlighting that Albizu Campos sacrificed himself to preserve the Puerto Rican nationhood. The act culminated with a performance of the famed group Yerba Buena, playing more traditional Puerto Rican music. Organizers announced a series of upcoming events geared to promote the leaders and events of Puerto Rican independence, such as the celebration of the 135th Anniversary of El Grito de Lares, Puerto Rico's historic revolution for independence in the year 1868.