Acie Cargill

Puerto Rico, A Dream of Independence Acie Cargill

A young couple meets at the NATO Summit demonstrations in Chicago. Mariana is the granddaughter of Che Guevara and is involved in working towards independence for Puerto Rico. They fall in love and go to Puerto Rico and live in a small beach house in an idyllic setting for their love to flourish. Because she is Che's granddaughter she is welcomed as a speaker at independence rallies throughout the island. She is captivating to her audiences and becomes quite popular and in demand. There are three main possibilities for Puerto Rico's future, independence, become a state of the union, or maintain the status quo as a possession of the United States. The Puerto Rican people are divided between those options, but in their hearts most Puerto Ricans have a dream of independence. This is Mariana's pacifist goal, to create motivation for the people to peacefully demand the US Congress grant Puerto Rico its independence as a nation. Of course, just because the Puerto Rican people demand independence does not mean they will get it. Will the US Congress even seriously consider it? Once the Puerto Rican people are united about independence, it will still be a difficult struggle to win the congressional votes, or even get independence to be given congressional consideration. But it can be done with some charismatic leadership and a workable plan. Gandhi did it in India. There would have to be a good reason for the US Congress to relinquish control of Puerto Rico. World condemnation and United Nations resolutions are not enough. The US would have to feel the pinch, probably with massive civil disobedience and a very active protest movement.