In Puerto Rico, Bad Bunny fuels the independence fire
On the eve of an international tour (which sold out like hotcakes), the Puerto Rican reggaeton star chose to kick off the festivities with a 30-concert residency on his native island. In addition to boosting the local economy, the foreign press reports how this residency is fueling the independence fire burning among Puerto Rican youth.">From Puerto Rico, we know the colorful houses that Old San Juan clings to its slopes and the expanses of turquoise water that tirelessly lap the white sand.
And then Bad Bunny, obviously.
With his musical residency beginning in July on his native island, “the artist has propelled Puerto Rico to the forefront of the international scene,” reports the British site The Independent , “ by showcasing his traditional music, denouncing the gentrification taking place on the island and questioning its political status.”
Let's start with a little historical reminder.
Puerto Rico has been under U.S. control since 1898, when Spain ceded the island after its defeat in the Spanish-American War.
In the 1950s, Puerto Rico became a free state associated with the United States, with its own constitution and an elected governor, recalls the British daily The Times .
According to the Puerto Rican newspaper “El Vocero” (which cites a study commissioned by the municipality of San Juan), with Bad Bunny’s residence in Puerto Rico, “we can expect economic benefits of around 302 million dollars [258 million euros] for the capital alone and around 377 million dollars [322 million euros] for the entire island.”">Today, Puerto Ricans are therefore American citizens subject to federal law and the Constitution.
But they cannot vote in the US presidential election. And they have no voting representatives in Congress, whose members ultimately control the island's governance, The Times continues.
“Although we are legally a free state associated with the United States, we are in realitya colonial possession.”
Jorell Meléndez Badillo, professor of Latin American and Caribbean history at the University of Wisconsin-
Madison, in the British daily The Times
For several decades, the main political divide dividing the island was whether to campaign to become a U.S. state or remain a commonwealth, a free associated state.
“Then there was a series of devastating crises,” The Times reports.
First, during Barack Obama's second term (2013-2017), the island's leaders declared a state of fiscal emergency and a debt crisis.
“An unelected financial oversight committee has taken control of the island's budget and finances, imposing harsh austerity measures that residents say have led to the deterioration of schools, hospitalsand infrastructure.”
The British daily newspaper The Times
This is the most powerful hurricane to hit the island since the San Felipe Segundo hurricane of 1928.">Then, in 2017, Hurricane Maria hit (and devastated) the island, killing 3,000 to 4,600 people.
Finally, foreign investors arrived. Puerto Rico was already (and had been for a long time) a tax haven. But the government offered new tax breaks to “wealthy mainland Americans to settle on the island,” explains The Times .
Bottom line: “The island's economy is controlled by foreigners, and decades of tax breaks for the richest have made it a playground for the wealthy. Meanwhile, Puerto Ricans, real Puerto Ricans, face skyrocketing living costs, power outages, and forced displacement,” summarizes the British bimonthly Huck .
“A profound political shift is underway that has brought a generation of young Puerto Ricans into activism and called into question the island’s future as an unincorporated territory of the United States. Much to the dismay of politiciansfrom Washington.”
The British daily newspaper The Times
And what about Bad Bunny?
According to The Times, he has become central: this summer, the Puerto Rican independence movement “is being reflected, fueled and amplified as never before by a 31-year-old artist who, just nine years ago, worked at a supermarket checkout.”
Calls for the governor's resignation had been made after a scandal revealed that the governor and his top aides were part of a private chat group containing misogynistic and homophobic messages.">Already in 2019, Bad Bunny's music became the soundtrack to widespread protests that led to the resignation of the island's governor.
During his first ever Puerto Rican residency concert on July 11, the singer spent half of his performance singing on the steps and then on the roof of a traditional house (which served as his second stage).
Aloud, he wondered: “Do good people live here? Or is this an Airbnb?” The Independent reports.
And the crowd approves: short-term rentals have grown from a thousand in 2014 to more than 25,000 in 2023.
“Bad Bunny doesn’t just represent youth. He represents the Puerto Rican nation,” Puerto Rican marine biologist Israel Diaz said in the British newspaper “The Times.”Today, disillusionment is reflected even at the ballot box.
In November 2024, in a non-binding referendum, parties advocating independence or “free association” won more votes than ever before, The Times reports, with around 40% of the total.
“A change largely driven by young voters and strongly supported by Bad Bunny.”
“Bad Bunny doesn’t just represent youth. He represents the nation.”Puerto Rican.”
Israel Diaz, 70, marine biologist, to the British daily The Times
For Huck, the singer is the voice of independence.
“He denounces exploitation, modern colonialism, and the erasure of Puerto Rican identity. His message is simple: Puerto Rico belongs to Puerto Ricans.” —
Courrier International
