Disaster capitalism hits Puerto Rico. PROMESA, the board appointed by Congress to oversee Puerto Rico’s economy, is calling for, among other things, the privatization of the school system and a 10% cut to pensions. On May Day citizens turned out to protest. From the streets of San Juan we have a report filed by Democracy Now! correspondent Juan Carlos Dávila.
Since our platform is about expressing ideas and ideals instead of cash flow, clicks, or fundraising, we have the freedom to include a wide range of topics and formats that might not work elsewhere. We don’t need or want paid content, promotional materials, or story lines designed to please donors.
So the idea here is to present videos one or more of the editors feel speaks to them. Sometimes it will be news. Sometimes it will be history. And a lot of the time it will be culture. You can not and should not separate these things: it is diversity and intersectionality that makes our movement strong.
Feel free to suggest videos at contact@sandiegofreepress.org
Rich Kacmar
Latest posts by Rich Kacmar (see all)
- Movin’ on with style and grace … | Video Worth Watching - December 14, 2018
- Paul Ryan’s Cowardly Act On Yemen | Video Worth Watching - December 13, 2018
- Don’t Believe Trump Is an Idiot? Don’t Take Our Word For It. Ask Google Images … | Video Worth Watching - December 12, 2018
This is a great video from Democracy Now. Even when they’re protesting, the vitality and music of the Puerto Rican people shines through.
It is high time that we own up to our responsibility toward Puerto Rico.
The U.S. took control of Puerto Rico over 100 years ago and treated it much like a colony ever since.
If you’re interested in learning about some of the policies that lead up to the current crisis, NPR has a radio piece that gives some of the background. It will come as no surprise to readers here that Wall street was heavily involved in creating the crisis.
Here is the NPR link:
https://www.npr.org/2018/05/02/607032585/how-puerto-ricos-debt-created-a-perfect-storm-before-the-storm
Thanks for the additional info, Michael. Reminds me of the deceptive practices used to sell mortgages that contributed to the housing financial market crisis.