Ugh, Colonialism

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LISTENING: to my stomach growl
FEELING: frustrated by a government that hates us
SEEING: a blank page

I've been working on a story about Puerto Rico's water crisis. Like so many issues afflicting Latin America, much of the island's infrastructural issues come back to colonialism. I learned that Puerto Ricans are taught a critical history lesson in school: The Taíno people settled in Puerto Rico for its abundance of water. Then, an age-old villain came along and ruined everything: colonizers.

Much of Puerto Rico's present-day infrastructure was built during Spanish colonial rule to serve extractive economies like sugar plantations. When the local people secured their freedom centuries later, they built rapidly, not sustainably. They did not foresee the climate catastrophes and corruption headed their way.

At least the federal government finally appears to be taking action on the water crisis. ABC News reported this week that the Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending trailers to Puerto Rico to help distribute water. Families are going two days without water at a time; some have suffered disruptions for over 100 days.

Water is a human right. It's also a relative. When governments abuse water, its people are the ones who bear the consequences. These are U.S. citizens, yet many of their representatives on the mainland treat them as less than. The government picks and chooses when our legal status matters. It's all bullshit. After all, our national identities and immigration statuses are colonial constructs. Ugh.

President Donald Trump and his cronies have quietly continued their quest to erect a wall across the U.S.-Mexico border, harming wildlife and humans alike. This week, the administration has advanced its bulldozing of sections of Big Bend National Park in Texas. All to keep people out. People who look like me. Like my mom. Like the ones whose faucets run dry in Puerto Rico. Like the vast majority of the thousands of people in this nation who don't have regular access to running water.

The U.S. has the resources. The Trump administration is spending $20 million in taxpayer dollars to give immigration officers gloves capable of electrocuting people. People the federal government deems criminals simply because they don't have the right paperwork. Because they didn't win the world lottery and be born American.

The news is depressing, y'all! I am planning to publish less frequently and explore simpler newsletter extras. I'm struggling to justify the labor I put into this weekly endeavor. I also want to make all posts public. If I can figure it out, I might try a Hail Mary and move to Substack.

My preliminary survey results suggest y'all wouldn't mind a slower place, but please let me know if you disagree by taking my reader survey. I'm going to close it end of August.

Change is good, right? I guess we'll see. 🌀

Currently Reading

Obsessed with this poem by fellow Salvi Claudia Rojas: "I write because my heart is / 73% ocean / and sometimes I hurt so much my ocean is a tsunami"

I've had the great pleasure of collaborating with Zoe Mendelson on a project, and yes, she really is that girl. She unpacks self-seriousness through the lens of freedom for The Rumpus.

I really needed this cyclospora breakdown from microbiologist Joan Rose for the Washington Post and The Conversation.

The case for comedy as an antidote to despair. Emily Strasser writes about her standup journey for The Guardian.

Jenae Barnes reports an ugly tale in North Carolina for the 19th, potentially the first confirmed collaboration between Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Forest Service.

Collage

If you're new here, become a paid subscriber (I've got a summer sale: $35 for the year) and comment on this Instagram post to automatically get a collage mailed to your home! I'll DM and email you to coordinate. My collage supplies are a mess right now — hence the lack of them lately. 🫠

- Yessenia x