March 4, 2025
Washington, D.C. – On March 2nd, the 3.2 million U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico celebrated the 108th anniversary of U.S. citizenship of island residents. To commemorate the anniversary, the Puerto Rico Statehood Council (PRSC) partnered with Governor Jenniffer González-Colón and the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration (PRFAA) in support of the first annual Puerto Rico Equality and Statehood Summit on Capitol Hill. The summit brought together citizen advocates, policymakers and stateside allies to urge Congress to advance legislation to resolve Puerto Rico’s territory status through statehood. Additionally, PRSC and statehood advocates sent a joint letter to the chair and ranking members of the congressional committees of jurisdiction in the House and Senate to inform them of last November’s vote for statehood and to urge them to introduce and pass legislation with a legally binding offer of statehood for Puerto Rico.
“This week, we celebrated 108 years of U.S. citizenship for residents of Puerto Rico, an anniversary we value as proud Americans. Hundreds of Puerto Rican leaders, citizen advocates and allies from across the U.S. came to Washington, D.C., joining forces with Puerto Rico Governor González-Colón to share the official results of the most recent political status plebiscite and to push for the introduction of legislation to end territory status and provide a pathway to statehood for the island,” said George Laws García, executive director of the Puerto Rico Statehood Council. “Congress must respond to the will of the majority of Puerto Rico’s voters who have rejected the current territory status and favored statehood at the ballot box four times since 2012. Statehood will provide Puerto Rico federal representation, equal rights and responsibilities, as well as the full protection of the U.S. Constitution. Statehood would also benefit America by increasing interstate commerce and strengthening U.S. national security. Simply put, a strong and prosperous Puerto Rico will be vital for protecting America’s Caribbean border and economic competitiveness at a time of increasing presence of China in the Latin American and Caribbean regions.”
In addition to over 80 meetings with congressional offices highlighting the advantages statehood provides to Puerto Rico and the 50 states, more than 57 organizations and activists from Puerto Rico and seven U.S. states sent a letter urging congressional leaders to act by introducing legislation. The letter includes groups representing veterans, retirees, women, youth, business leaders, Republicans and Democrats. In addition to Puerto Rico, activists and organizations signing the letter hailed from Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, New Jersey, Virginia, Rhode Island and Washington, showing the growing reach of the Puerto Rico statehood movement.
“As we reflect on the anniversary of U.S. citizenship for the people of Puerto Rico, it is clear that statehood is the only non-territorial option that would permanently protect and guarantee equal rights and the American citizenship that Puerto Rico voters value and celebrate now and for future generations born on the island. We urge Congress to listen to Puerto Rican voters, who supported statehood with over 58% of the vote this past November and take up legislation to end to the fundamentally unjust and colonial reality of Puerto Rico’s unincorporated territory status. Statehood will unleash Puerto Rico’s economic potential, creating a more prosperous Puerto Rico and America as a whole,” concluded Laws García.