Ponce massacre
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The Ponce Massacre is one of the darkest and bloodiest events in Puerto Rico history . On March 21, 1937 the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party organized in the south of Ponce to demonstrate for the release of the imprisoned nationalist Pedro Albizu Campos and for the independence of Puerto Rico from the United States .
Chronology of events
Days before the protest, the Nationalist Party had received permission to demonstrate. The governor of Puerto Rico, General Blanton Winship , wanted to withdraw the permit. Winship's job in the service of the US government was to suppress the independence movement that had gotten going since the 1932 elections and some violent rioting. For some inexplicable reason, the police surrounded the demonstrators and opened fire. 21 Puerto Ricans died and 200 were injured. One of the dying demonstrators wrote the message with his blood: “Viva la República. Abajo los asesinos “on a wall. A grand jury was unable to prove that Winship was guilty. However, the lawyers were appointed by the governor, which may bias their verdict in his favor.