Why Puerto Rico is not a US state 

It's been months since Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico. Watch our video on the conditions many Puerto Ricans are still facing in the aftermath: bit.ly/2DBCPVp Read about Puerto Rico's latest bid for statehood on Vox.com: bit.ly/2DGlz4L

46% of Americans don’t know puertoriqueños are U.S. citizens? 🤦🏼‍♂️

So you draft them for wars but you don't give them statehood. Shameful.

Taxation without representation means that Puerto Rico is an american colony .

Wait. So judging by flags, Captain America is actually Captain Puerto Rico?

I thought it was pretty common knowledge that Puerto Ricans were US citizens.

Puerto Rico was a PROVINCE of Spain and had seats on its' parliament... yet 118 years have passed and we still don't have seats on Congress. I Serve in the US military and am stationed in Puerto Rico and we deserve equal respect because I uphold and protect the US constitution and thee American dream in which this nation was founded on. No Taxation without Representation.

why did the usa become independent from the uk taxation without representation UK to US-Ahhh you have become the very thing you swore to destroy

“Taxation with representation” anyone?

The irony is how over 200 years ago we used " no taxation without representation" as a way to criticize the British government smh

"Americans didn't know Puerto Ricans are American citizens." I mean, Americans also don't know that Africa is not a country, so

I live in Puerto Rico :] Some of the people that live here still don’t have water nor power. Although, the government is trying to fix the electrical problems, but it takes a lot of time because of the location of the area and the supplies we need.

Kind of realized that this could have happened to the Philippines considering it being an old colony of both Spain and America

Apparently Trump doesn’t know its a US territory ether.

This makes it seem as if the government immediately gave Puerto Ricans citizenship. They didn't. For a long time Puerto Ricans suffered because the US didn't know what to do with their newly acquired colony.

As a proud US Virgin Islander, I would like to point out that, along with PR, we have also suffer from hurricane Maria as well as hurricane Irma and our recovery is just as slow as as PR’s. But we are getting less of the media coverage. The VI has the same rights as PR and have the same struggles but are always left out of the discussion.

In 1916, Puerto Rico asked for Independence and the USA refused (as promised in 1898) and forced USA citizenship upon the people in 1917.

I've been to PR, it is indeed an island surrounded by water.

Puerto Rican’s should be allowed to vote wtf

I'm from DC where we also don't have a voting voice in Congress...but we have less than a third the population. It's inexcusable that Puerto Rico has so little federal recourse.

"Commonwealth" you've spelled COLONY wrong

Taxation without representation. Call it what it is, Puerto Rico is a colony of the United States. We need to stop being hypocrites and either respect/acknowledge Puerto Ricans' decision to become a state, or we let them become an independent nation.

*"In the middle, no. Being a Commonwealth!"* That's basically the same thing

At this rate, I think Puerto Rico should be it's own country. But the decision is up to them.

I wonder if Puerto Ricans would choose to go back to Spain, and if the US would let them go. Interesting topic.

VOX failed to say that Puerto Rico was INVADED by the US after the war ended. And that citizenship came because the US wanted them to work in the "mainlan"

It's called colonialism.

Wait, I’ve lived in Puerto Rico all my life, and the statement that we “pay most federal taxes” is something I’ve never heard before. Only certain freelance workers and service providers have to pay federal income taxes on the island. Apart from Social Security, (which we’ll get back in later years, fingers crossed) and whatever levy is being placed on goods as a result from the Jones Act, the rest of our taxes are local in nature, be it “state” or municipal. I’m a proponent of statehood as much as anyone, but to me the mantra of “taxation without representation” falls a bit flat in this case.

"No taxation without representation" yeah right...

This is so interesting- thanks for the well researched video - so sad about the Hurricane Maria damage - more and more people are staying in FL just to get some basic necessities and a break from all of it

They should protest "no taxation without representation." It will show us our hypocrisy

I’m Puerto Rican so I clicked on this video as soon as I saw it 😂😂

Puerto Rico was an Spanish province..NOT an Spanish Colony!

No taxation without representation is a statment of hypocrisy.

I didn't realize they were still struggling as much as they are. I think if we had more compassion for them Congress might be willing to make changes that benefit them. But it starts with us showing we care. Thank you for the information and awareness on the topic!

Puerto Rico won’t get respect it deserves until it becomes US state. It could promote investment in the island

Why do people dislike this it’s just information? 😅

i love puerto rico🇵🇷🇵🇷

I am Puerto Rican and fully support independence!

It’s quite sad that Puerto Rico was more free and represented when was part of the decadent Spanish “Empire” than now that it is part of the USA

Y'all couldn't post this a week ago when i needed it for a project lmao

I'm really disappointed in myself to admit that I didn't know Puerto Ricans were us citizens until, like December of last year

This is "Democracy" everywhere in the world.

I am so glad my country, the Philippines, received Independence from the US. We used to be an American Commonwealth like Puerto Rico, but we opted for independence and not statehood.

This is basic elementary school education. How do people not know Puerto Rico 🇵🇷 is a U.S. territory? People need to start reading more because public education is failing them.

Thank you so much for uploading this video. It reflects very accurately what is happening here on the island.

US even gave up Philippine Commonwealth without referendum

It’s so sad...that’s exactly what Cuba didn’t want back in the 40s, I believe....the US was trying to get them to be a part of them like PR is now, but Cuba wanted to be its own country without allegiance to another host country with no say in the matter. I hate it for PR and I hate it for Cuba...why my Caribbean people gotta be treated like this?!

No taxation without representation!

In November 2020 Puertorricans elected statehood 53% over independence with a 68% of participants voters ... I hope that US Congress respect our decision to become a state. Remember that we are US citizens...

It’s kind of like when the British colonized the United States. Americans were furious due to taxation without representation, kind of like the same thing going on in Puerto Rico. Except that Puerto Ricans don’t seem to care because they can legally travel to mainland US to escape any concerns they may have in Puerto Rico so they don’t take action politically.

Three years and still no Spanish subtitles, weird, as in Puerto Rico people speak Spanish

Puerto rico should become a U.S state.

Independencia para Puerto Rico 💙🇵🇷💙

Funny how people from Europe and Asia don’t realize Bad Bunny and Dadee Yankee are from there 😂🤦🏻‍♂️

Hmm, this is odd, many of my friends that studied abroad mentioned that they don't pay federal income tax in Puerto Rico.

But now ALL Puerto Rican’s (on the Island and the USA) will band together and FIGHT for our Island, Heritage, and Culture! Que viva Puerto Rico! GOD Bless us all! I’m extremely proud to be Puerto Rican!

GOD( Father, Son, Holy Spirit) Bless The United States of America and The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico USA.🇺🇸🇵🇷🦅🗽🙏✝️☦️❤️

Viva Puerto Rico! 🇵🇷 Respeto desde Filipinas! 🇵🇭

lol at the topic! You explained the history of Puerto Rico, but you did not answer your own topic, "Why Puerto Rico is not a US state"? WHY?

Totally explained in under 5min. Wow you did the impossible. If only one could explain something with so many variables in under 5 mins.

Where is our Puerto Rican people in this comments? I miss the island, anyone else? 😭

People do know that Puerto Rico itself doesn't want to be a state, the government isn't allowed to do anything until the territory applies for statehood, and they have not

The people have voted repeatedly not to be a state. Not America's fault, unfortunately. Forcing statehood onto Puerto Rico or creating a new pseudo state category just for Peurto Rico isn't the answer if you ask me...

I love how America is ignoring what the country stands for..."freedom." It is literally just modern imperialism.

who's here when puerto rico just voted for statehood?

I don’t feel Puerto Ricans should worry about losing their identity with statehood. We’ve definitely managed to keep ours here in Hawaii. Culture remains strong with those who choose to carry it on!

Taxation without representation Was the reason for US revolutionary war Is that the same thing taking place on Puerto Rico???

Got this when Puerto Rico just voted for statehood

This was a really nice video, but you failed to mention a few important aspects as to why PR is still not a US state. I would also like to note how PR was allowed an autonomous charter by Spain, shortly before being invaded by the US a mere eight days later. It was then 50 years before they were "given" the privilege of having their own governor. This video makes it seem like this happened all at once. In addition, it was 20 years until those born in 1898, and conveniently old enough to fight in WW1, were granted US citizenship. Or how the island already fought through recover from another monster storm - San Ciriaco - in which thousands died with the US sending NO AID. You also failed to mention the Insular Cases before the Supreme Court, a series of rulings from the same court that decided “separate but equal” segregation in Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896. Only these cases still provide president and are a major reason why PR receives substantially less than it gives to the federal government in comparison to some similarly sized states. At one point, these courts declared that there could be no minimum wage standard as was already established in the US. Or the mass sterilizations perpetrated by the US, or massacres while under US appointed governors, or the inevitable racist comments brought up whenever the premise of statehood was brought up (some repeated in this comment section). It is difficult to prosper under colonialism. As one of the last colonies left in the world, what we are seeing now in PR is a direct result of centuries of colonial rule - first by Spain, and now by the United States.

U guys do realise that if Puerto Rico becomes independent it will be as poor as any other Latin American country. So if that's what U guys truly want, go right ahead

Make them a state or give them Independence.

The US acquired the Philippines and Puerto Rico at the same time. Thank God the Philippines got independence.

You realize many Puerto Ricans dont want state hood because they would have to pay federal I come tax, also taxes are way cheaper

As a puertorican im sooo happy someone is shedding light on our situation👏🏻

Of course Vox fails to mention why Puerto doesn't WANT to be a state; they'd have to pay taxes. A LOT more taxes. Money they do not have. Commonwealth is awesome, good currency, investments and protection (as well as a huge labor and economic market)

Puerto Rico is just like the island of Malta was to Great Britain before 1964, it had its own 'government' but budgeting and other matters where taken by the British parliament, at a point it was discussed for Malta to have representatives in the House of Commons in London however it ended up taking the decision to become an independent country and later on a republic. So I think Puerto Rico should use Malta as a case study for their future​.

I believe America should let Puerto Rico go. Leave and let them do what they want.

Why was there no mention of the independence movement?

Thank you for this video and for raising awareness

Australia had a territory like this once. We gained it in World War 1 (quite a while after the Spanish-American war.) We let them become a country in 1975. It is now called Papua New Guinea. And as for changing the flag? We haven't yet, Australia still has a 7 point star representing every state and Papua new guinea, we just changed the meaning of it so the other point is for the Australia territories.

Give Them Statehood, These People are Tax Payers.

No president will ever make Puerto Rico a state

Just to add to this, there are several reasons why some Puerto Ricans are heavily opposed to statehood. The initial move to make Puerto Ricans US citizens was largely *because* the US needed them for the draft. Following (and before) that there has been a long history of economic disparity between the two nations, particularly regarding industries such as sugar cane and the pharmaceutical industry; as recently this year, it has been a serious concern that a new age of 'sugar barons' might return based upon actions by US politicians in relation to the island. It is also worth noting that Post WWII, there was significant human experimentation taking place on the island that is well documented. Specifically, contraceptives were being tested on Puerto Rican women which resulted in the sterilization of many without their knowledge, and the Puerto Rican nationalist party leaders were subjected to radiation testing while imprisoned for protesting. Many Puerto Rican citizens want statehood so that they can be appropriately represented, but reasons such as these are why others do not. I guess on my end, statehood and proper representation would allow them to finally have a proper say in how they are treated whereas now they are mostly at the mercy of outsiders. I'd link some articles but it's RU-vid and I don't want to be that sketchy guy leaving random links in his comments.

Give statehood to Puerto Rico 🇵🇷

If Puerto Rico becomes a State the American citizens of Puerto Rico would need to start paying federal income tax... why would they want that?!?

US: Have 600 billion funds for military. Puerto Rico: Am I a joke to you?

Who’s here after watching Vox’s latest video on Washington, DC possibly becoming the 51st state?

If Puerto Rico became independent It would be a lot of work and we would have to decide on the looks of a Puertorican dollar and we would also have to decide who would be our president/leader. It could take years

Puertoricans in Puerto Rico do not file or pay individual federal IRS taxes. This is not correct.

Puerto Rico should just walk away from being a colony and become their own nation I am almost certain that alot people wouldn't care

Same thing in Martinique and Guadeloupe in "french Caribbean" Libertad y Dignidad Viva Puerto Rico libre

Puerto Rico needs to become a state. They can still keep their identity. I mean New Englanders have a different culture than southerners and mid westerners. The Puerto Rican flag would still be a state flag and they can keep their language and everything. Just Do it.

"Puerto Rican statehood advocates want 5 house representatives and 2 senators" ...very strange statement. It is not what they want, it is what they will get if the become a state.

I think Puerto Rico should continue belonging to the USA, but some kind of autonomy

make Puerto Rico a state

2:16 Who the hell decided to use yellow and... slightly darker yellow as two of the three colors on this graph?????

Taxation without representation. You mean the US is doing the same thing to Puerto Rico that the British Empire did to them? Oh the hypocrisy.

I’m Puerto Rican we deserve help

If the US is going to treat puertoricans like second class citizens (yes, CITIZENS, we are US citizens even when born in the island) I rather the island be handed back to Spain. Other European countries like France, England and Holland have territories in the Caribbean and ALL OF THEM are doing much better than PR. With Spain at least we had dignity, representation in parliament and the right to trade with the rest of the world. If all US cares about is the military bases then we could reach an agreement to let them keep them.