The beginning of this year went from “Happy New Year’s” to “EARTHQUAKE”. Later on, we asked ourselves to “Why do we have to follow the executive order presented by the governor, Wanda Vázquez, if Covid-19 is not in Puerto Rico yet?” real quick. Nevertheless, our government has implied that Puerto Ricans do matter when she tweeted: “Puerto Rico, … ¡Mi prioridad eres tú!” the 7th of February this year. But when have Puerto Rican citizens, who have been suffering domestic violence, mattered to our political leaders in power?
In 2011, the Division of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Justice circulated an investigation regarding our police’s constitutional violations. They produced two-and-a-half pages stating the lack of credibility in the domestic violence and sexual abuse statistics. They pointed out that, besides their inadequate response to these harsh circumstances, police members have continuously been accused of perpetuating abusive behavior: this represents a grave threat to the island residents. While most Puerto Ricans are searching for ways to acquire money due to the inadequate economic response, people are dying because of the lack of prioritization of human safety: the government always awaits and relies on the National Alert.
Meanwhile, the number of people affected by family abuse and sexual assault continues to increase throughout the years. Subsequently, having a dialogue with Ricardo Rosselló during his term and not seeing any changes, the feminist organizations have gotten more assertive about the matter. Despite a raging pandemic going on, they have been the ones to share helpful information with us, while also being the voice of domestic and sexual assault victims.
Sadly, the Police of Puerto Rico (PPR) have not implemented the U.S. Department of Justice and feminist organizations’ recommendations. Therefore, it is up to us to help the victims of these situations by educating ourselves with projects such as Observatorio de Equidad, which has made and encouraged Domestic Violence reports throughout Covid-19.
Check out these projects for more information on the matter:
Todas, Feminist Digital Puerto Rico Newspaper
Colectivo Feminista en Construcción, a political project that unites feminists against the capitalism and patriarchy