The legacy of the Young Lords is something that has followed me throughout my adult life as a New York–born-and-bred child of Puerto Rican immigrants. The Young Lords’ unrelenting calls for Puerto Rican independence, their various interventions in local politics, their unyielding solidarity with colonized and working-class people everywhere, their stunning presence (often augmented by […]
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“Women like me aren’t supposed to run for office,” began the now-legendary campaign ad for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, released just four weeks ago. What followed was a powerful, viral video, called “The Courage to Change,” that addressed racial and gender identity and meshed seamlessly with one about her social class position. “I wasn’t born to a […]
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The Trump administration’s stance toward immigration enforcement and its clashes with sanctuary cities is stirring action on college campuses. In New York City, a coalition of students and faculty at New York University want the institution to officially declare itself a sanctuary campus, saying universities have to be clear about standing by their community. “I’ve had […]
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The imposition of the Fiscal Oversight Board on Puerto Rico constitutes a wholly undemocratic re-colonization of what was once known as the Commonwealth, one that should immediately compel all Americans to take to the street to denounce this hideous betrayal of their country’s imagined role as the leader of the free world. But the most […]
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The new Living in Spanglish radio episode is a special Puerto Rican Pride edition, in time for the Puerto Rican National Day Parade in New York. There’s plenty of salsa, bugalú and boleros, and special guests iLe, Calle 13 vocalist with a new solo album called Ilevitable, and David Galarza, Nuyorican activist, talk about life, love, […]
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“In 1984, bankruptcy protection was arbitrarily taken away from Puerto Rico by Congress.” “The Puerto Rico debt should be audited to reveal possible illegal transactions, as well as Wall Street abuses, not only in the sale of the debt but also debt swap underwriting.” “There should be no fiscal oversight board. Puerto Ricans alone should […]
Read more2015 was not an easy year to get through in many ways. A lot of troubling signs have appeared on the landscape: Continuing injustice toward people of color in the form of extra-judicial police killings of unarmed civilians, increasing wealth inequality, the Puerto Rico Debt Crisis, the continued threat of gentrification, out of control gun […]
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Just before Thanksgiving this year my four-part investigative series about whether or not Rikers Island prison complex could be saved by reforms or should be closed and replaced by small community justice centers was cross-published by City and State and City Limits. The series covers the cases made for both reform and closure, the history of […]
Read moreOriginally published at City Limits’s Bronx Bureau site: By Ed Morales The Democratic Party primary held on June 24th for the 13th Congressional District was a contentious one, pitting the Dominican-born challenger Adriano Espaillat against Harlem’s native son, incumbent Charles Rangel, for the second time in two years, and the political fallout was predictably intense […]
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“Hablemos dos puertorriqueños aquí apoyando a Charlie Rangel,” said Luis Gutiérrez, standing with fellow US Representative José Serrano as they entered a press conference to announce their support for the ageless Rangel, who is facing a serious challenge to his Congressional seat in an upcoming June 24 Democratic Primary. The symbolism was palpable: two Puerto […]
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ED MORALES 