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UCLA Electronic Theses and Dissertations UCLA UCLA Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title From El Nuevo Despertar to Nonprofit: Changes in Puerto Rican Community Organizations from 1980 to the Present Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6fh48544 Author Majdi Clark, Parissa Publication Date 2014 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles From El Nuevo Despertar to Nonprofit: Changes in Puerto Rican Community Organizations in New York City since 1980 A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science by Parissa Majdi Clark 2014 © Copyright by Parissa Majdi Clark 2014 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION From El Nuevo Despertar to Nonprofit: Changes in Puerto Rican Community Organizations in New York City since 1980 by Parissa Majdi Clark Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science University of California, Los Angeles, 2014 Professor Mark Q. Sawyer, Chair During the early 1970’s, Puerto Rican grassroots activism in U.S. communities reached its height on the heels of the civil rights movement and after widespread migration to the U.S. from Puerto Rico. By 1980, many of these groups became financially insolvent or their volunteer base shrank drastically due to decreasing public funds and widespread demographic changes within Puerto Rican communities. This dissertation asks the following questions: how did these groups negotiate citizenship rights in terms of identity, place, and institutional proximity? What role do factors such as race, gender, local politics, philanthropic support, and congressional representation play in these organizations’ bids for success? This study analyzes two case study groups from the Puerto Rican civil rights era in New York City, The United Bronx Parents and Aspira, through original fieldwork consisting of extensive archival content analysis of organizational records and correspondence as well as oral interviews with organizational staff and leadership past and present. ii The overarching goal of these inquiries is to explain the consequences and strategies that have come out of non-profit corporate and philanthropic modeling among Puerto Rican organizations since 1980 and the implications of these changes on political identity and the process of expanding civil rights in American politics. The project also investigates the intricacies of the El Nuevo Despertar, or late era of the Puerto Rican movement; most notably the strong presence of female leadership among grassroots organizations. This study documents the significant shift in demographics and public funding after the dissipation of war on poverty programs which Puerto Rican organizations in New York each handled differently and with vastly different outcomes. These organizational choices are of much interest in the general arena of Latinos, political inclusion, and community/ nonprofit work today. Theories utilized in discussion include citizenship, formal and informal political institutions, the politics of place, racial solidarity, Puerto Rican nationalism, and Latino nonprofit organizational culture. These themes specific to the Puerto Rican community extend to general discussions of the Latino political and economic middle class as a growing stake holder in New York City and across the United States. This topic is of much interest in political science and ethnic studies today as the political challenges facing Latino representation in the private and public sectors are garnering vast public attention. Understanding the Puerto Rican experience across the canvass of exclusive American democracy broadens traditional notions of politics and participation and expands the concept of citizenship from a static set of privileges to a dynamic process of negotiation. iii The dissertation of Parissa Majdi Clark is approved. Raymond A. Rocco Edmond Keller César J. Ayala Mark Q. Sawyer, Committee Chair University of California, Los Angeles 2014 iv For all of my family across states, borders, and time. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction: Puerto Rican Identity Politics and Migration ....................................................1 Historical Context ................................................................................................................8 Scope and Methodology ....................................................................................................11 Chapter Outline ..................................................................................................................13 1. The Negotiation of Puerto Rican Citizenship ........................................................................15 Negotiated Citizenship .......................................................................................................18 Liminality and Citizenship .................................................................................................21 Puerto Rican Racialization and Coloniality .......................................................................27 Second-Class Citizenship...................................................................................................32 New York City and the Politics of Place ...........................................................................37 Institutional Proximity .......................................................................................................45 Nonprofit Organizations of Color ......................................................................................47 2. A Historical Schema of Puerto Rican Activism ....................................................................49 Boricua Nationalism ..........................................................................................................54 The History of Aspira and the United Bronx Parents ........................................................62 The War on Poverty and Government Funding .................................................................70 3. Aspira and the United Bronx Parents Archival Data ..........................................................74 Aspira Newsletters 1987-1990 ...........................................................................................76 UBP Correspondence Letters 1968-1990 ..........................................................................83 City Grants and Range of Programs ..................................................................................89 Budget Documents .............................................................................................................91 Conclusion of Findings ......................................................................................................97 4. The Negotiation of Identity, Place, and Institutions among Aspira and the United Bronx Parents ..........................................................................................................................................99 Expressions of Puerto Rican/Latino Identity ...................................................................101 Corporate Culture.............................................................................................................105 Institutional Proximity and Place .....................................................................................109 Gender, The Ethics of Care, and Citizenship ...................................................................114 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................120 Epilogue: The Contemporary Neoliberal Latino Nonprofit ..................................................122 Aspira and the UBP in 2014 ............................................................................................127 Appendix .....................................................................................................................................132 Bibliography ...............................................................................................................................134 vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2.1 –Aspira Puerto Rican Culture Flyer…………………...………………………... 57 Figure 2.2 – UBP La Universidad Urayoan…………………………………………….........58 Figure 2.3 – Aspira Newsletter……….…………...……………….………………………......65 Figure2.4 – UBP Good Principal………………………...…………..……...………………....68 Figure 3.1 – UBP Funding FY ‘90……………………………………….…………………….94 vii LIST OF TABLES Table 3.1 – Percentage of ID Terms used in Newsletter Articles…………….….…….…….77 Table 3.2 – Percentage of Code Themes used in Newsletter Articles………..………...…….78 Table 3.3 – Aspira Public Policy Leadership Program (APPLP) and Aspira Institute for Policy Research (AIPR)…………………………………………………………….…..….79 Table 3.4 –ID Terms used in Correspondence Letters…………………….…………...…….84 Table 3.5 – Percentage of Code Themes used in Correspondence Letters………….….......86 Table 3.6 –Budgetary Source FY ‘90……………………………………….…………..….….91 viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation’s inception was in 2003 when I taught bilingual social studies at I.S. 172 on Amsterdam and Broadway in Harlem. In the spirit of Aspira and the UBP’s mission to guide and inform and as a Freirian educator, I would like to thank all of my university and K-12 students that I have had the honor of teaching over the past decade for keeping me informed. In addition, thank you to all of the activists and staff members who allowed me to interview them about their lives and experiences and who reminded
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