Puerto Rico flag black and 'in mourning' over US-imposed financial oversight board

[TexasTowelie]

The famous door in Old San Juan now has the Puerto Rican flag painted in black and white, as a sign of mourning and resistance. There is also a small altar. Photo by Marina I. Pineda Shokooh, used with permission

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- For many Puerto Ricans, the national flag is a symbol of cultural pride and identity, especially in light of the island's colonial status under the United States’ government. Now, with an artistic tweak, the flag also represents the state of mourning that the island has been experiencing since the US government imposed a federal control board with power over the commonwealth's jurisdiction.

A group of artists have altered a famous door painted with the Puerto Rican flag by changing its original colours from blue, red, and white to black and white to mark the approval of the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act, also known as PROMESA. Passed by the US Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama, the act was promoted as a way to manage Puerto Rico's more than $70 billion of debt.

But PROMESA severely undermines the island's political autonomy. Its measures, which include a decrease of the hourly minimum wage to US$4.24 (about $3 less than the US federal minimum wage), have galvanized people to organize daily civil disobedience events and camps.

The flag mural is located on the facade of an abandoned building on San José Street in Old San Juan, and before its makeover locals and tourists alike often took photos of it as a memory of their visit. The door is surrounded by litographs of famous Puerto Rican artists made by the collective Grabadores por Grabadores.

Read more: http://www.caribbeannewsnow.com/topstory-Puerto-Rico-flag-black-and-%27in-mourning%27-over-US-imposed-financial-oversight-board-31119.html

[Javaman]

1. given the debt load that has been imposed on PR...

PR will become the next Haiti.

It's going to get much much worse and will never get better.

given the current state of debt and the circumstances by which repayment was set up, they will never ever be able to repay.

this is all thanks to goldman sacks and their ilk.

good thing there were all those massive reforms put in place after the great recession, right? RIGHT?

the lending terms are just like payday loans.

PR is completely screwed, forever.

[Blue_Tires]

2. 'in mourning'? Would they rather we hung them out to dry?

Did they forget it was mostly their own goddamned government who put them in this hole? Now they're crowing about a "Prexit?" (god help me we need to kill that word)... By all means, be my guest...

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/business/dealbook/puerto-rico-debt-crisis-explained.html?_r=0
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/02/business/dealbook/puerto-rico-power-authoritys-debt-is-rooted-in-free-electricity.html
http://www.bloomberg.com/quicktake/puerto-ricos-slide
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/01/business/dealbook/puerto-rico-debt-relief-law-stirs-colonial-resentment.html
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/07/puerto-rico-promesa-debt/489797/

[SickOfTheOnePct]

3. Yep

I've long thought that Puerto Rico should be given a timeline to conduct a final vote on statehood. If they want to become a state, great.
If they don't, then cut 'em loose.