Research has demonstrated that educational attainment, residential location and segregation, migration status, types of jobs available, and spatial location, as well as discrimination, all influence and shape the poverty status of Puerto Ricans in the United States. Few treatments of the causes and consequences of Puerto Rican poverty focus on politics. The purpose of this essay is to address this imbalance by looking at how previous studies envision the relationship between poverty and politics and from there to suggest a link between politics and poverty, focusing on the role politics may play in the elimination of poverty. Although low levels of political participation, ethnic divisions, and institutional neglect are key in explaining the inability of Puerto Ricans to address issues of poverty through political action, other factors have also played a role. The paper explores the role of four such variables: the colonial relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States, the timing of mass Puerto Rican migration, the effectiveness of interest group activity, and the contribution of Puerto Rican political leaders.
Publisher:
City University of New York : Centro de Estudios Puertorriqueños (provided by DOAJ)
Journal description