Luis Muñoz Rivera

Luis Muñoz Rivera

Luis Muñoz Rivera (born July 17, 1859 in Barranquitas , Puerto Rico , † November 15, 1916 in Luquillo , Puerto Rico) was a Puerto Rican poet, journalist and politician.

Life

Muñoz Rivera came from the oldest family of politicians in Puerto Rico. His father Luis Muñoz Barrios was mayor in 1856 and 1874, and his grandfather was a Spanish captain who became city administrator.

In 1887, Muñoz Rivera took over the leadership of the Autonomist Party and in 1890 founded the party newspaper La Democracia . Since Puerto Rico was under Spanish ownership at the time, he traveled to Spain in 1893 to learn more about the political system. On his return to Puerto Rico, he participated in the drafting of the Plan de Ponce , which proposed administrative autonomy for the island. In March 1895 he went to Spain as a member of a commission that met with the liberal leader Práxedes Mateo Sagasta . This political group accepted the views of the commission and in November 1897 Sagasta granted the Autonomist Charter. Muñoz Rivera served in the new, independent government of Puerto Rico as Secretary of State and from July 21, 1898 head of cabinet of the autonomous government.

Four days later, the United States invaded Puerto Rico. As a result of the Treaty of Paris, Puerto Rico became the property of the United States and was ruled by a military governor. Muñoz Rivera helped set up an island police force. On February 4, 1899, he withdrew from the government. Shortly afterwards, the US Governor Guy Vernor Henry dissolved the cabinet, removing the last remnants of the autonomous government and freedoms that Muñoz Rivera had sought under Spanish rule. Muñoz Rivera responded with the statement July 25th. Why don't we celebrate it , which it released on the first anniversary of the invasion. Muñoz Rivera resisted the military government and called for greater self-determination. In 1899 he founded the El Territorio newspaper , which advocated the concerns of landowners injured by the blockade imposed by the United States. He traveled to the United States to promote free trade between the island and the United States. In New York City in 1901 he founded the bilingual newspaper Puerto Rican Herald .

On his return to Puerto Rico, he founded the Unionist Party ( Unión de Puerto Rico ). In 1906 he was elected to the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico , where he remained until 1910 before he became the Resident Commissioner for Puerto Rico in the House of Representatives of the United States . From 1911 to 1916 he was a member of the Congress . In 1915, Muñoz Rivera proposed that the island be granted more autonomy and equality without requiring independence from the United States or recognition as a state. His proposal met with opposition from José de Diego , among others , but his party eventually came to an agreement. Muñoz Rivera played a major role in the Jones-Shafroth Act , which was signed on March 2, 1917, which granted Puerto Ricans citizenship of the United States and created a two-chamber legislature modeled on the US Congress. However, he was not satisfied with the act as the judiciary and executive were still under US control. He fell ill a short time later and returned to Puerto Rico, where he eventually passed away before the Jones Act became law. He is buried in the San Antonio De Paduas Cemetery in his hometown.

His son Luis Muñoz Marín also played an important role in Puerto Rican politics, as he founded the Partido Popular Democrático and became the first democratically elected governor of Puerto Rico. His daughter Victoria Muñoz was also politically active; she worked in the legislature and in 1992 unsuccessfully applied for the office of governor.

Poems

Statue of Luis Muñoz Rivera in the park named after him

• Retamas
• Tropicales
• Horas de Fiebre
• El paso del déspota
• Minha terra
• Cuba rebelde
• A cualquier compatriota
• Las campanas
• Turba multa
• Alea jacta est
• Judas
• El general
• Abismos
• Patriota
• Himno
• Pariah
• Poemas Liricos

literature

• Frauke Gewecke: Puerto Rico between the two Americas. Volume I. On politics, economy, society and culture of a nation in a territorial no man's land (1898-1998) . Vervuert, Frankfurt am Main 1998. ISBN 3-89354-102-0 , especially pp. 39–47.

Footnotes

1. ↑ Frauke Gewecke: Puerto Rico between the two Americas. Volume I. On politics, economy, society and culture of a nation in a territorial no man's land (1898-1998) . Vervuert, Frankfurt am Main 1998. ISBN 3-89354-102-0 , p. 39.

Web links

• Luis Muñoz Rivera in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• Biography in the Library of Congress