Change The Flag or Change The Status? Ay, Puerto Rico!

Is it just El Nuevo Dia's reporting or do legislators in Puerto Rico like to use their positions to impose ambiguous and quite frankly, silly laws and regulations on their constituents (and the entire island)? Today in an article in the island's most widely circulated newspaper titled "Representante defiende proyecto para cambiar color a la bandera", reports that a Representative from Ponce is trying to officially change the colors of the Puerto Rican flag (gasps!). The legislator, Luis “Tato” León Rodríguez, (with a seemingly "Ponce es Ponce y lo demás es parking" attitude) says it is in order to "save and protect the integrity of this national symbol" (one that was interestingly created by Puerto Rican exiles in New York in 1895). What color is he trying to change it to? Well, the blue of the triangle - from its official dark blue to its historic light blue (more gasps!).

Now, anyone who knows me would think that I am now going crazy - am I not an independentista who knows and believes that the light blue is the original and revolutionary blue? Is this not what I want the flag too look like when the island is finally free and sovereign? Well, yes and yes! And for all those reasons it just boggles my mind why anyone in a position of (somewhat) power would advocate for the changing of a "national symbol" into its more revolutionary roots but also say in the same breath that this is not about the status issue (yeah, ok) but about filling a "legal gap." 

Boricuas, as special as we are (¿Tú no sabías que Diós es puertorriqueño?), we cannot have our cake and eat it too. A legislator cannot legislate nationalism while simultaneously shying away from the idea of a sovereign nation. And you know what is the most ironic thing about all of this? That this man is a member of the pro-statehood party! Ave María, what next, the PNP is going to start advocating for a trade agreement with Cuba? 

Anyway, this idea was shot down by Luis Fracaso... I mean Fortuño, who said in a press conference (in none other than in my town of Juncos!) that this never has been an issue of discussion and will not be in the future. ¡Fuácata!