2021 -- S 0693

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LC002172

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2021

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

JOYOUSLY CELEBRATING "EMANCIPATION DAY OF PUERTO RICO" ON MARCH 22,

2021

     Introduced By: Senators Mendes, Mack, Bell, Pearson, Euer, Quezada, DiMario, and
Raptakis

     Date Introduced: March 18, 2021

     Referred To: Recommended for Immediate Consideration

     WHEREAS, Emancipation Day is an official holiday of the Commonwealth of Puerto

Rico, commemorating the abolition of slavery on March 22, 1873, when the Island was still a

colony of Spain. On that day, the Spanish National Assembly banned slavery in Puerto Rico; and

     WHEREAS, Twenty-five years later, in 1898, American troops defeated Spain in the

Spanish-American War, raised the flag in Puerto Rico, and the United States officially took

control of the former Spanish colony. On March 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson signed the

Jones-Shafroth Act into law, under which Puerto Rico became a United States Territory and

granted statutory citizenship to Puerto Ricans. The Act also created a bill of rights for the

territory, and separated its government into executive, legislative and judicial branches; and

     WHEREAS, On May 18, 1917, President Wilson signed the Selective Service Act of

1917 into law, and 20,000 Puerto Ricans were eventually drafted to serve during World War I.

Puerto Rican soldiers were sent to guard the Panama Canal which made Puerto Rico a critical part

of the United States war efforts; and

     WHEREAS, The first Puerto Ricans in Providence arrived in the 1920s and moved into

the surrounding areas to work in the agricultural and manufacturing industries. Rhode Island is

now home to more than 40,000 Puerto Ricans, and Rhode Island served as a place of refuge for

many Puerto Rican friends and family members after Hurricane Maria devastated the Island in

2017; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island hereby recognizes the

territory of Puerto Rico for its major contributions in science and pharmaceutical development,

which have advanced our nation's ability to reduce our dependence on foreign pharmaceutical

ingredients and be on the cutting edge of pharmaceutical advancement; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That this Senate hereby joyously celebrates March 22nd, 2021 as

"Emancipation Day of Puerto Rico" and furthermore recognizes Rhode Island's shared history

with the territory of Puerto Rico and its contributions to our country and our State; and be it

further;

     RESOLVED, This Senate hereby further recognizes that over a century later, the citizens

of Puerto Rico, although Americans by birth, are not fully recognized and honored by being

denied full voting citizenship, because it is not guaranteed by the Constitution, nor are they

represented in our federal government with a voting delegation; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to the Governor of Puerto Rico, the Honorable

Pedro Pierluisi Urrutia.

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LC002172

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