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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE Puerto Rico En Mi Corazón: Young Lords/Puerto Rican Radical Nationalists During the Late 20th Century DISSERTATION Submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in History by Martha Mercedes Argüello Dissertation Committee: Professor Winston A. James, Chair Professor Vicky Lynn Ruiz Associate Professor Lauren Robin Derby 2015 ©2015 Martha Mercedes Argüello TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii CURRICULUM VITAE vi ABSTRACT OF DISSERTATION vii INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 1: La Isla 20 CHAPTER 2: Migration, Labor, Transnational Politics 60 CHAPTER 3: Chicago: Rising Up Poor, Rising Up Angry 102 CHAPTER 4: New York and Beyond 146 CHAPTER 5: The Young Lords Movement Dreams, Demands, Platform and Vision 181 CONCLUSION: Pa’lante 216 BIBLIOGRAPHY 219 i LIST OF TABLES Page Table 2.1 Puerto Rican Population, States: New York, Illinois, 1950-1970 94 Table 2.2 Puerto Rican Population, Increase States: New York, Illinois 95 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation represents a long journey of discovery and development, one that allowed me to become immersed in histories that profoundly impacted me. Its completion would not have been possible without the support of many. The process has been long and often challenging. However, I was continually reminded of the reason that I embarked on this journey, namely, that the stories and histories of the people who surrounded me, are indeed important. Attending graduate school would not have been possible without the financial support provided by the University of California, Irvine and the History Department. Additionally, I am indebted to the Schlesinger Library’s Summer Seminar on Gender History, and the Dissertation Workshop organized by the Institute for Advanced Feminist Research at UC Santa Cruz and the UC Transnationalizing Justice Multicampus Research Group, for their financial and academic support. The experience in both, proved to be invaluable. This work would not be possible without the assistance of the archivists and staff of various university libraries. The following libraries assisted me in my search for documents related to the Young Lords and the New Left: Special Collections at De Paul University and Stanford University, the Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives at New York University, the Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley. I spent a considerable amount of time at the Centro de Estudios Puertorriqueños and Hunter College, CUNY. And at the Hoover Institution Archives at Stanford University, where staff members directed me towards important collections and endured my multiple requests for assistance. I found tremendous support and guidance at the Archivo General de Puerto Rico in San Juan Puerto Rico and its affiliated Archivo Fotográfico. The Laboratorio Fotográfico at the Centro de Investigaciones Históricas Sobre Puerto Rico y el Caribe, Universidad de Puerto Rico, Recinto de Rio Piedras, Biblioteca General, also proved to iii be invaluable. I am particularly grateful to the staff of the newspaper Claridad, who allowed me the rare opportunity to access their archived newspapers, posters, and photograph collections and provided a space for me to work in while in San Juan. Throughout this process, the dissertation committee guided me and offered warmth, understanding, and positive encouragement. I will forever be indebted to them. My dissertation chair, Winston James, came to my aid when I most needed it and urged me to move forward or pa’lante as some of us are fond of saying. His gentle prodding has gotten me to this final stage. I have also been privileged to work with committee members Vicki Ruiz and Lauren Robin Derby, scholars whom I admire professionally and personally. Robin’s comradely and vivacious spirit is renowned; she has lifted my spirits many times. Special thanks to Heidi Tinsman and Alice Fahs, who both believed in my abilities and in the value of my work. In addition to the members of my dissertation committee, UCI Professors Rachel O’Toole, Heidi Tinsman and Steve Topik guided me through foundational coursework on Latin American and Caribbean History as did Laura Mitchell in African History. I am grateful for the work of two University of California groups. The Cuba and the Caribbean working group at UCLA welcomed me into their fold of Caribbeanist scholars and at a critical juncture, served to enhance and revitalize my commitment to these studies. I am indebted to Robin Derby and Jorge Marturano for their endeavors in bringing us together and keeping us engaged and connected. Similarly, the UC-Cuba, Multi-Campus Academic Initiative coordinated by Raul Fernandez deepened my understanding of the histories of Cuba in particular, and the Caribbean in general. I would also like to thank Raul Fernandez, for his support and his ability to bring music and humor to those lucky enough to cross paths with him. iv My academic family at the Claremont Colleges has also been a motivating force during critical periods of this journey. I extend my heartfelt thanks to Cindy Forster for the many, many times she mentored, advised, and provided sustenance and friendship. Sheila Walker, chair of Africana Studies, offered me a place to grow as a teaching professional. She has mentored, guided and supported me in multiple ways. Abrazos to Sid Lemelle, Miguel Tinker-Salas, Phyllis Jackson, Suyapa Portillo, Alicia Bonaparte, Jose Calderon, April Mayes who have all been an important part of this process. Fellow graduate students Adriana Ramirez, Teishan Latnor, Danielle Vigneaux, and Nick Bravo, offered their smiles, friendship and support. To my fellow citizen of the world, Shreelaja, biologist extraordinaire, I extend a warm thank you for your friendship, calm spirit, and keen intellect. In the spirit of compañerismo, Diana Schwartz, opened her home to me when I attended classes at UCLA through the UC Intercampus Exchange Program. Gracias mi hermana. My final words of gratitude go to my family. To my sister Carmen: you are my hero! My nieces and nephews give me great hope and pride in the beautiful web we call family. To my father, Papa Abiga, I offer thanks for always encouraging and providing for my education. None of this would have been possible without the support of the loves of my life: Alfredo, Sergio, Gabriel and Nicolas Arguello. My life partner Alfredo, has provided an incredible outpouring of love and support. To say thank you, does not begin to express what this has meant. To my sons, new daughters and future grand-daughter, I send a loving embrace and my sincerest hopes that your future holds a more just world. In the process of writing this dissertation, I have lost three of my most cherished family members: my mother Elinisia “Manisa” Rodriguez, my brother Dr. Juan Jose “Tito” Nolasco, v and my cousin, Isis Duarte. All deeply believed in education and social justice. Their lives have inspired me and have kept me moving forward. They would have loved to share this moment with me. Manisa, Tito, Isis, I dedicate this work to you. vi CURRICULUM VITAE Martha M. Arguello EDUCATION Ph.D. in History, University of California, Irvine June 2015 M.A. in History, University of California Irvine June 2008 BA Scripps College, Claremont, California, Cum Laud May 2005 Honors in History, Art History SCHOLARSHIPS AND AWARDS Summer Research Fellowship, UCI School of Humanities 2011 Transnationalism, Feminism, Justice Residential Dissertation Workshop Award 2010 Institute for Advanced Feminist Research at UC Santa Cruz, UC Multicampus Group on Transnationalizing Justice UCI Center in Law, Society and Culture, Graduate Fellow Award 2008-2009 Summer Seminar on Gender History 2008 Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University Conference Travel Award, University of California, Irvine 2008 Regents Fellowship, University of California, Irvine 2005-2007 TEACHING EXPERIENCE Adjunct Instructor, Scripps College, History 2011-2012 Adjunct Instructor, Pitzer College, Africana Studies 2009, 2011 Africana Studies 195F: Special Topics in Black Studies: Teaching Assistant Positions University of California Irvine, Department of History 2007-2011 University of California, Department of African American Studies 2008 PUBLICATIONS “Sisters, Brothers, Young Lords, A Common Cause: 40 Years of Struggle and Remembrance” ReVista, Harvard Review of Latin America, Winter 2009, p. 43. vii ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Puerto Rico en mi Corázon: Young Lords/Puerto Rican Radical Nationalists During the Late 20th Century By Martha Mercedes Arguello Doctor of Philosophy in History University of California, Irvine, 2015 Professor Winston A. James, Chair This dissertation examines the development of the Young Lords Movement. Founded as the Young Lords Organization in Chicago, 1968, it quickly spread into New York and multiple cities and attracted Puerto Ricans, African Americans, Chicanos and other Latin Americans. Young Lords’ platform and protests demanded political power, community control of neighborhoods and institutions, and Puerto Rican independence. Although most studies place the Young Lords solely within the confines of radical movements in the United States, my work situates island politics and the colonial status of Puerto Rico at the center. It also positions the Young Lords within histories of the Caribbean and broadly, Latin America, and the New Left of the United States. This study makes additional interventions, bringing together the history of the Young Lords’