this post was submitted on 15 Mar 2025

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1052

Don't Want All Those Brown People Having Equal Representation (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) by jubilationtcornpone@sh.itjust.works to c/politicalmemes@lemmy.world

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Context: Donald Trump spewing bullshit about annexing Canada and Greenland. Meanwhile, Congress has been dragging their feet for YEARS on resolving Puerto Rico's territorial status.

Citizens living in US territories do not receive equal representation in congress. For instance, PR has one "delegate" to the House (not an official voting member) and no senators. Taxation without representation.

Although, at this point I wouldn't blame PR if they changed their minds about wanting to become the 51st state.

(page 2) 25 comments

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[–] epyon22@programming.dev 17 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Puerto Rico in reality "good now everyone can stop asking us to be the 51st"

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[–] Kidplayer_666@lemm.ee 16 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Washington DC: bottom meme

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[–] theLaLiLuLeLol@kbin.earth 11 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Didn't they also not want to become a state though? Last I heard they mostly wanted to remain a territory.

[–] refutablewife@reddthat.com 5 points 2 days ago

Every boriken I know would very much prefer independence

[–] OhStopYellingAtMe@lemmy.world 10 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Republicans don’t want PR as the 51st state because: PR doesn’t have oil wells & PR has brown people.

[–] Sibshops@lemm.ee 7 points 1 day ago

Also, it's because Puerto Rico voted 65% for democrats.

[–] Crashumbc@lemmy.world 7 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Although close the last couple times PR voted, they voted against becoming a state....

[–] Sibshops@lemm.ee 6 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I don't think that's correct. They've been voting for statehood. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_Puerto_Rican_status_referendum

[–] EldritchFeminity@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 1 day ago

My understanding is that historically, the vote has been almost 50/50, but that there have been issues with the question that have thrown up doubts about the validity of the referendum conclusions. Stuff like giving the options of statehood or territory, but not independence, etc. Even the one you linked says that only around half of the population responded and over 200,000 ballots were thrown out for either being blank or invalid.

I had thought that a significant portion of the population had been in favor of independence, especially since we came in and basically destroyed their economy. They had been one of the largest manufacturers of pharmaceuticals in the world before the US, and now I think their biggest industry is tourism, which, as someone who has lived in a tourist town for decades, is not conducive to a healthy economy.

[–] Venus_Ziegenfalle@feddit.org 7 points 2 days ago

For instance, PR has one "delegate" to the House (not an official voting member) and no senators. Taxation without representation.

That's the kinda stuff people have had to actively ignore in order to be surprised by current events. Like that's straight up a colony. The thing the US used to be before allegedly abolishing the concept.

[–] taiyang@lemmy.world 6 points 2 days ago

While I know PR probably isn't down for becoming a state now, we know that if they did have two senators and several house members, we'd be in a lot less shit right now. Hell, how many electrical votes would they have been in 2016 and 2024?

[–] aeronmelon@lemmy.world 7 points 2 days ago (1 children)

And the District of Columbia, and Guam, and Saipan, and Micronesia, and…

[–] merc@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 day ago

DC should vote for independence.

[–] HenriVolney@sh.itjust.works 6 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Puerto Rico could apply for EU membership!

[–] moody@lemmings.world 8 points 2 days ago (1 children)

They could become a Canadian province. We'd welcome them in, but wouldn't force them into it against their will.

[–] merc@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 day ago

It would make a lot of sense. Canada already has a province where the population doesn't speak English. And Canada would definitely appreciate a place with a tropical climate in a way the US never would. Plus, 3.2 million people is easy to ignore in a country of 330 million. But, in Canada they'd be the 5th biggest province, so they'd hold a lot of sway.

Or, at least, they could join the Commonwealth and have stronger relations with Canada, the UK, the Bahamas, Antigua and Barbuda, Jamaica, etc.

[–] samus12345@lemm.ee 4 points 2 days ago (2 children)

I would think Puerto Rico is ready to no longer be a commonwealth, much less a state.

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[–] ChickenLadyLovesLife@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago (5 children)

Fun battleship fact: all US battleships have been named after states except for one: BB-5, the USS Kearsarge. The original Kearsarge fought in the Civil War and sank the Confederate raider Alabama; ever since then the US Navy has always had a ship in commission named Kearsarge - presumably as a giant fuck you to the South for losing. BB-5 got the name in 1900, forever ruining an otherwise-perfect ship naming convention. For this reason, I support Puerto Rico becoming a state, but only if they rename themselves Kearsarge.

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