“There’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now — I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”
This was the supposed joke by the so-called comedian Tony Hinchcliffe during a rally for former U.S. President Donald Trump at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Oct. 27, just days before the presidential election. The comment immediately drew backlash from many different communities, but no community feels the sting of the statement like the people actually living in Puerto Rico.
As a sixth-year student at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez who has lived in Puerto Rico my whole life, I feel repulsed by this poor attempt at comedy. If it weren’t so offensive, in fact, I’d almost be impressed by how bold it was.
And I’m not alone — I spoke with other students at my school to get their take on the “joke” as well.
“It is ironic how he made fun of an island that provides so much to the U.S.,” junior Jaimylee Feliberty says, referencing the ways in which some people in power don’t respect the island. “They think of us as garbage, but don’t think twice [about] exploiting us for money, military power, and much more.”
Although a spokesperson for Trump’s campaign said the joke “does not reflect the views” of Trump or his campaign, I don’t think it’s possible to overlook the poignancy of the comment being made at an event supporting the former president. Following Hurricane Maria’s devastating impact on Puerto Rico in 2017 (while Trump was president) many critics said the Trump administration provided inadequate federal response, which left us without important resources like power, water, and medical care for months. Despite Trump making statements claiming his administration did a “fantastic job in Puerto Rico,” Carmen Yulín Cruz, the then-mayor of San Juan, stated in 2018, “the [Trump] administration killed the Puerto Ricans with neglect. [They] led us to believe they were helping when they weren’t up to par.”
Referencing this disaster, junior Sarai Fontanez says of Hinchcliffe’s joke, “His comments were very ignorant and insensitive to Puerto Ricans. Insulting the critical condition of the island [which was made a reality in part] by the hands of the negligence of a presidential administration, while being at a political rally for the same [administration], is certainly not [the] way to gain the vote of Puerto Ricans living in the U.S. [mainland].”
I lived in Puerto Rico. And apart from the fact that it is in fact a beautiful island, Puerto Ricans have a LOT of pride about where they are from pic.twitter.com/V8kKHWYSxN
— Asha Rangappa (@AshaRangappa_) October 27, 2024
This incident is particularly jarring considering there are certainly Trump supporters within Puerto Rican communities. With this in mind, many are left wondering how they could justify supporting someone who allowed such derogatory comments to be made about our people at an event for his campaign. “It’s disappointing to see some of my close family is showing support for him as a candidate, and this situation shows the absence of self-respect from the people in our community who vote for candidates like him … candidates [who] do not have their best interest in mind,” junior Viviana Seda says.
“I’m very disappointed, but ultimately not surprised.”
Based on my experiences, many young Puerto Ricans believe Trump is out of touch with the island’s bigger issues, and many resent that he delivers controversial comments on immigration and Puerto Ricans. Because of this, some even think these comments made at his rally are par for the course. “I’m very disappointed, but ultimately not surprised,” junior Gabriela Rivera says.
Rivera also added about Hinchcliffe’s joke, “To reduce our home to a ‘floating island of garbage’ is incredibly disrespectful and ignorant.”