Join the Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies (CLACLS) for a discussion with author, Harry Franqui-Rivera, Associate Professor of History at Bloomfield College.

March 21, 6 pm
The Graduate Center CUNY
365 Fifth Avenue, NYC
Skylight Room, 9th flr

** This event is free and open to the public **
**   Reception and Book signing to follow    **

Discussants:
Teresita Levy, Associate Professor, Department of Latin American and Latino Studies, Lehman College/CUNY

Aldo Lauria Santiago, Professor in the Department of Latino and Caribbean Studies & Department of History, Rutgers University

Must pre-order books due to space limitations: https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/university-of-nebraska-press/9780803278677/

About the book:
As the island of Puerto Rico transitioned from Spanish to U.S. imperial rule, the military and political mobilization of popular sectors of its society played important roles in the evolution of its national identities and subsequent political choices. While scholars of American imperialism have examined the political, economic, and cultural aspects of U.S. colonialism in Puerto Rico, few have considered the integral role of Puerto Rican men in colonial military service and in helping to consolidate the empire. In Soldiers of the Nation, Franqui-Rivera argues that the emergence of strong and complicated Puerto Rican national identities is deeply rooted in the long history of colonial military organizations on the island. Franqui-Rivera examines the patterns of inclusion-exclusion within the military and the various forms of citizenship that are subsequently transformed into socioeconomic and political enfranchisement. Analyzing the armed forces as an agent of cultural homogenization, Franqui-Rivera further explains the formation and evolution of Puerto Rican national identities that eventually led to the creation of the Estado Libre Asociado (the commonwealth) in 1952. Franqui-Rivera concludes that Puerto Rican soldiers were neither cannon fodder for the metropolis nor the pawns of the criollo political elites. Rather, they were men with complex identities who demonstrated a liberal, popular, and broad definition of Puertorriqueñidad.

About the Author:
Dr. Harry Franqui-Rivera is an Associate Professor of History at Bloomfield College in New Jersey and Executive Director of the New York Chapter of the National Puerto Rican Agenda. He is known as a public intellectual, cultural critic, blogger and NBC, Latino Rebels, and Huff Post contributor. He writes, blogs, and publishes in online magazines about current issues ranging from geopolitics, local and national politics and economics to social and cultural matters.

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