[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 195 (Thursday, December 15, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H9884]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 DECOLONIZING THE PEOPLE OF PUERTO RICO

  (Mr. TORRES of New York asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. TORRES of New York. Mr. Speaker, as a Puertorriqueno, I am proud 
to have voted for the Puerto Rico Status Act, which, if enacted, would 
begin to break the cycle of colonialism that, for more than a century, 
has relegated Puerto Rico to second-class status.
  The landmark legislation would empower Puerto Rico to be in command 
of its own political destiny.
  What matters above all is not the particular status that the people 
will ultimately choose. What matters is the right of the people to 
choose the status that best expresses their will and the right of the 
people to have their will given the binding power it has long deserved.
  If enacted, the Puerto Rico Status Act would not only restore 
democracy on the island, but it would also reinforce democracy here on 
the mainland United States because it would mean no longer depriving 3 
million of our fellow citizens of their fundamental right to self-
determination.
  I call on the Senate to join the people's House in decolonizing the 
people of Puerto Rico.

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