Puerto Ricans Immigrating to America Essay -- Puerto Rican History Cul

Puerto Ricans Immigrating to America The migration of Puerto Ricans to the United States occurred in two major waves. The first wave was in the 1910s-1940s and the second wave was from the 1960s to the 1990s. Each wave of migrants brought new generations of Puerto Ricans to the United States. Both waves of migrants believed that they were going to live a better life in America and migrated to major cities such as New York City, Chicago, Hartford, etc. The early migrants looked for industrial jobs such as in cigar factories while the later migrants found agricultural work such as in tobacco fields. The communities in which they lived grew larger and larger due to chain migration and because of this, the need for politics evolved. However, the type of politics that evolved as a result were different for each wave, yet had many similarities as well. If you would like to learn a little more about Puerto Rican migration itself, read Jamie Hellman's paper and Shakira Ramos' which goes into more depth. Class politics was the major form of politics that evolved during the early half of the twentieth century. According to Bernardo Vega, the tabaqueros were the only organized group in existence. They formed many clubs whose membership was not limited to Puerto Ricans only. Although the clubs consisted mainly of Cuban and Puerto Ricans, other people of different ethnic origins were members. One reason for this can be that the main leaders were exiles who had radical views and wanted change quick. Their concern was of homeland issues and they fought for independence from Spain. Concentrating on home issues, they paid no attention to their hostland (meaning America) issues because they lived with the belief that they were... ...from The Commuter Nation: Perspectives on Puerto Rican Migration," ed. By Carlos Antonio Torre, Hugo Rodriguez Vecchini, and William Burgos. (Rio Piedras, PR: Editorial de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, 1994), 313-328 2. James Dietz, Migration and International Corporations: The Puerto Rican Model of Development," ed. By Carlos Antonio Torre, Hugo Rodriguez Vecchini, and william Burgos. (Rio Piedras, PR: Editorial de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, 1994), 153-170 3. Tom Seidl, Janet Shenk, and Adrian DeWind, "The San Juan Shuttle: Puerto Ricans on Contract," from The Puerto Ricans: Their History, Culture, and Society, ed. by Adalberto Lopez. 2d. Ed. (New York: Shenkman, 1980), 417-431 . Video: "Pa’lante, Siempre Pa'lante!" [The Story of the Young Lords Party], Written and Directed by Iris Morales.