'PA for Puerto Rico': Coalition plans political push to give island bankruptcy option

A coalition called “Pennsylvania for Puerto Rico” is seeking political support for a solution to the island territory’s debt crisis that doesn’t burden its citizens and sets the stage for a more prosperous future.

They met Thursday at Lancaster City Hall to discuss strategy.

It was the group’s first meeting in central Pennsylvania, and it yielded an ambitious action plan.

Among the key elements: a letter-writing campaign, a social media push, lobbying of elected officials and large-scale demonstrations at the upcoming Democratic and Republican national conventions.

Angel Ortiz explains the Puerto Rican debt crisis and why Pennsylvanians should be concerned.

“There must be a universal expression of indignation,” said Norman Bristol Colón, a Lancaster businessman and activist. Colón served as head of the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs under Gov. Ed Rendell.

The crisis is not a Puerto Rican problem, but an American one, he said.

Mired in economic doldrums for a decade, Puerto Rico is roughly $72 billion in debt, which its governor has said is unpayable.

Bondholders insist on full repayment, accusing the government of corruption and mismanagement.

Congress must pass legislation allowing Puerto Rico to declare bankruptcy and allow it to restructure its debt, participants at the meeting said.

The territory previously had that power, but lost it when U.S. law was revised.

In the long term, Puerto Rico needs Congress to authorize other tax and health policy reforms, said Gretchen Sierra-Zorita, a public policy consultant based in Washington, D.C.

But right now, time is pressing.

January is a critical month, Sierra-Zorita said. Debt payments are coming due. There is bankruptcy legislation in Congress, but it won’t do Puerto Rico any good unless it is passed.

People who want to help should send letters to Congress, House Speaker Paul Ryan and President Barack Obama, she said. They should get on social media and present the facts about the crisis.

Ángel Ortíz, a former Philadelphia councilman, called for Puerto Ricans and Latinos to demonstrate at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland and the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. Both take place in July.

Organizers should aim to mobilize at least 10,000 Pennsylvania Latinos to gather in Philadelphia, and call on Latinos in other states to join them, he said.

“I think we can do that,” he said, adding that if it happens, “We will energize every Latino and Puerto Rican voter across the state.”

The movement should seek the support of allies, such as labor and women’s groups, Colón said, adding that Latinos have been consistent allies for them.

Mayor Rick Gray, who attended the meeting, said he was among the U.S. mayors who signed a letter to the House of Representatives urging support for the White House’s proposed package of legislative reforms for Puerto Rico.

He asked the coalition to prepare a summary of the problem and a model resolution for city councils to pass. Gray is president of the Pennsylvania Municipal League and said he would make sure the information is widely disseminated.

Pennsylvania for Puerto Rico was formed last year and is part of a broader national movement, said Nilda Ruíz, president and CEO of Asociación Puertorriqueños en Marcha, a social service organization based in Philadelphia. Thursday’s meeting was the first in central Pennsylvania.

Many at the meeting complained about Puerto Rico’s status as a territory, beholden to Congress and subject to numerous laws that limit its economic and policy options. Simply put, Puerto Rico is a colony, Ortíz said.

Much of the media reporting favors the bondholders’ point of view, Sierra-Zorita said. Lost in the discussion is the crisis’ effects on ordinary Puerto Ricans.

The island’s poverty rate is 45 percent. The unemployment rate is about 12.5 percent, but that doesn’t count the 40 percent of the working-age population that has given up looking for work, Sierra-Zorita said.

Puerto Ricans are emigrating in droves, with the well-educated among the most likely to leave.

“It is a humanitarian crisis,” Colón said.

TIM STUHLDREHER

'PA for Puerto Rico': Coalition plans political push to give island bankruptcy option