Recent Books on Puerto Rico

• Author: Azalea Corral
• DOI: 10.1177/0094582X20919761
• Date: 01 May 2020
• Published date: 01 May 2020
• Subject Matter: Book Reviews

https://doi.org/10.1177/0094582X20919761

LATIN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES, Issue 232, Vol. 47 No. 3, May 2020, 141

DOI: 10.1177/0094582X20919761

© 2020 Latin American Perspectives

141

Recent Books on Puerto Rico

Erman, Sam. Almost Citizens: Puerto Rico, the U.S. Constitution, and Empire. Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press, 2019.

Sam Erman delves into the denial of U.S. citizenship for Puerto Ricans despite the

island’s annexation under U.S. control. The status of Puerto Ricans is critically analyzed

in light of the U.S. Constitution.

Gautier, Luis. Puerto Rico: Independence, Industrial Policy, and Growth. Lanham, MD:

Lexington Books, 2018.

Luis Gautier argues that in an era of globalization the current Puerto Rican economic

crisis would benefit from an autonomous government and world trade rather than from

U.S. economic policies dating to 1899. The book offers an analysis of the U.S. role in

Puerto Rican economic policies, policy debate, and political economy.

Meléndez, Edgardo. Sponsored Migration. Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 2017.

Edgardo Meléndez focuses on U.S. colonialism, labor, migration policy, and the circum-

stances that drive Puerto Ricans to migrate to the United States. He explores the ques-

tion: are people who move from Puerto Rico to the United States internal or international

migrants?

Sanabria, Carlos. Puerto Rican Labor History 1898–1934: Revolutionary Ideals and Reformist

Politics. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2018.

Carlos Sanabria focuses on labor movements in Puerto Rico during the early twentieth

century. U.S. colonialism is examined through the reorganization of the economy, the

labor force, and labor unions. The analysis explores major issues around the struggle for

independence with emphasis on the American Federation of Labor.

—Azalea Corral

919761LAPXXX10.1177/0094582X20919761Latin American PerspectivesCorral / BOOK REVIEW

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