Libros/ Books
El Sol Latino July 2020
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Revolution Around the Corner | Voices from the Puerto Rican Socialist Party edited by JOSÉ E. VELÁZQUEZ, CARMEN V. RIVERA, and ANDRÉS TORRES • Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press | February 2020 | 408 pages Description: Active from the late 1960s until the mid-1990s, the U.S. branch of the Puerto Rican Socialist Party (PSP) worked simultaneously to build support for Puerto Rican independence and to engage in radical social change within the United States. Revolution Around the Corner chronicles this unique social movement, describing various mass campaigns and the inner workings of the organization. The editors and contributors—all former members, leaders, and supporters of the PSP— offer a range of views and interpretations of their experience. Combining historical accounts, personal stories, interviews, and retrospective analysis, Revolution Around the Corner examines specific actions such as the National Day of Solidarity (El Acto Nacional), the Bicentennial without Colonies, the Save Hostos struggle, and the Vieques campaign. Testimonies recount the pros and cons of membership diversity, as well as issues of loyalty and compañerismo. In addition, essays describe the PSP’s participation in coalitions and alliances with Left and progressive movements. The book concludes with the editors’ reflections on the PSP’s achievements, mistakes, and contributions. Contributors: Maritza Arrastía, Teresa Basilio Gaztambide, Rosa Borenstein, Ted Glick, Alfredo López, Pablo Medina Cruz, Ramón Jimenez, Lenina
Nadal, José-Manuel Navarro, Alyssa Ribeiro, Olga Iris Sanabria Dávila, Digna Sánchez, América “Meca” Sorrentini, Zoilo Torres, and the editors
About the Authors JOSÉ E. VELÁZQUEZ is a lifelong activist for social justice in the United States and Puerto Rican independence, and is co-editor with Andrés Torres of The Puerto Rican Movement: Voices from the Diaspora (Temple). His opposition to the Vietnam War in the early 1970’s resulted in an important legal case in United States v. José Emiliano Velazquez. José is a retired educator and curriculum writer from the Newark Public Schools. A presenter at the founding of the Amistad Commission of NJ, he often lectures on Afro-Latino issues. CARMEN V. RIVERA recently retired after having served as a Certified Life Coach and capacity building consultant for over 25 years. A public health policy advocate, she held top ranking positions in New York City government and for the City of Boston. Her activism has centered on women’s rights, national liberation and social justice movements. One of her personal passions is documenting the history of Puerto Rican political activism in the United States from the 1960s to early 1990s. She directs the Recovering History Project and its archival collection on the Puerto Rican Socialist Party in the U.S. ANDRÉS TORRES is a retired Distinguished Lecturer from Lehman College, City University of New York. Previously he was professor at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. He is the author or editor of Between Melting Pot and Mosaic: African Americans and Puerto Ricans in the New York Political Economy, The Puerto Rican Movement: Voices from the Diaspora, and Latinos in New England (all Temple). He is also the author of the memoir Signing in Puerto Rican: A Hearing Son and His Deaf Family.
The Case against the Jones Act edited COLIN GRABOW and INU MANAK • Washington, DC: CATO INSTITUTE | June 2020 | 250 pages How has an archaic, burdensome law been able to persist for a century? Passed in 1920, the Jones Act restricts the waterborne transport of cargo within the United States to vessels that are U.S.-flagged, U.S.-crewed, U.S.-owned, and U.S.-built. Meant to bolster the U.S. maritime sector, this protectionist law has instead contributed to its decline. As a result, today’s U.S. oceangoing domestic fleet numbers fewer than 100 ships. Beyond leaving a shrunken and uncompetitive maritime sector in its wake, the law has also inflicted considerable damage on the broader U.S. public that range from higher transportation costs to increased pollution. The chapters in The Case against the Jones Act delve into some of the act’s founding myths and the false narrative its supporters have helped to perpetuate. The book evaluates the law’s costs, assesses its impact on
businesses, consumers, and the environment, and offers alternatives for a way forward. The Jones Act’s failures reveal that the status quo is untenable. Contributors to this volume hope that the evidence presented will spark discussion about the Jones Act and lay the groundwork for the repeal or significant reform of this outdated law.
About the Editors And Contributors Colin Grabow is a policy analyst at the Cato Institute’s Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies, where his research focuses on U.S. trade with Asia as well as domestic forms of trade protectionism, such as the U.S. sugar program and the Jones Act. His writings have been published in a number of outlets, including USA Today, The Hill, National Review, and the Weekly Standard. Inu Manak is a research fellow at the Cato Institute. She is an expert in international political economy, with a specialization in international trade policy and law. Manak’s research focuses on the World Trade Organization, non‐judicial treaty mechanisms, technical barriers to trade, regional trade agreements, and development. With an introduction by Anne O. Krueger. Contributors to this volume include: Keli’i Akina, James W. Coleman, Andrew G. Durant, Steve Ellis, Timothy Fitzgerald, Thomas Grennes, Daniel Griswold, Howard Gutman, Daniel J. Ikenson, Taylor Jackson, Logan Kolas, Ted Loch‐Temzelides, Nicolas Loris, Robert Quartel, Manuel Reyes, and Bryan Riley.
