Puerto Rico and American Poverty

Recently a friend, Theo, worked in Puerto Rico, an island in the Caribbean, for several years on a volunteer basis as an attorney for the poor and marginalized through an organization that he learned about while working in San Francisco, CA.  He was initially apprehensive because of the crime and cartel activities present in the commonwealth.  He would call and report the poverty of the people and how his work really seemed to make a difference especially when his clients couldn't pay with money.  There were times that he did fear for his life, mostly during tropical storms.  He had trouble with the other people living in his apartment and learned nothing was sacred: to live with only what he actually needed.  Despite some of his troubles Theo found friendship in those he worked and prayed.  When he returned to the mainland USA, his thoughts lingered on those he had left behind in the streets and those crammed together too many to an apartment. 

Most Americans don't think too much about Puerto Rico except as a place where exceptional baseball players like Hiram Bithorn, Vic Power and Carlos Beltran.  What many of us don't realize is that Puerto Rico has approximately 3.5 million residents who are U.S. citizens.  According to the US Census Bureau those living below the poverty line is almost half of the island residents.  How many more earn barely more than it?  Curiously these US citizens, through the commonwealth government, are being sued by Walmart.  The reason is government of Puerto Rico (similar to state governments) has increased the taxes, which may or may not be discriminatory toward Walmart (a major employer on the island), may or may not violate Federal law or the Constitution: all of these need to be decided by the courts.  Who will pay for the cost of all these court fees?  Who is it going to hurt the most?  Usually the poorest among us.

As we think of the poor in Puerto Rico, it is difficult to miss our own homeless in our cities and towns.  It seems like more and more everyday are needing to be fed at the shelters that provide meals.  During the winters it is very tough for many as they hope for a bed at the overnight shelter and churches open their doors to become overflows for the shelters.  When the temperatures drop to below freezing it is not uncommon to find homeless under freeway overpasses, in underground paths for rivers, or banded together over a garbage can fire trying to keep warm.  Sometimes the poor are also sheltered by starving and lack heat, electricity and water in their own homes.  Each winter we learn about more of these poor through tragic news reports.

For those of us living in the United States we mostly hear about poverty being in third world countries.  We are a country of great wealth.  It is amazing that so many of our citizens live in such dire conditions.  This holiday season, perhaps we can open our hearts a little more and ask ourselves, what if I were in their shoes?