Rutgers for UPR Action Group

Here’s an interesting article to read on this holiday.

When Martin Luther King, Jr. Visited Puerto Rico King visited the island at least two times in his life: in 1962 and in 1965.

Rutgers has released an official academic response for students affected by Hurricane Maria.

Read it here: https://rarp.rutgers.edu/

Home | Rutgers Academic Response for Hurricane Maria Affected Students As New Jersey's state university, Rutgers University has established an Academic Response Program (RARP) as an interim measure to academically assist students who were attending colleges and universities in the areas most savagely hit by Hurricane Maria. The Rutgers Academic Response to Hurricane Ma...

Update: Parts of Mayagüez now have electricity.

DÍA 6 - Comienza a llegar la luz a , . Hospitales San Antonio y Perea están energizados. Igual parte del casco urbano. Próximo el Centro Médico en el municipio.

Plaza Las Américas and El Coliseo Roberto Clemente have light!

Hurricane Maria has knocked 100% of Puerto Rico's power grid, and has left 25% of the population without running water. There is an estimate of more than 15,000 refugees and many more without a home. There is a growing growing scarcity of gas and food. Interested in helping? Instead of donating to people or foundations that are affiliated with the same people that got Puerto Rico into debt, consider putting your money towards orgs that are *in* the community, locally. Click the link or check out this organizations:

Here are some options:

Casa Pueblo de Adjuntas: www.casapueblo.org

Comedores Sociales: https://www.cdpecpr.org/comedores-sociales-de-puerto-rico

Salud y Acupuntura Para el Pueblo: https://www.facebook.com/saludacupunturapr/

Colectivo Agroecologico Guakia: https://www.facebook.com/guakiapr/

Taller Salud: http://www.tallersalud.com/

Vive Boriken: http://www.viveboriken.org/

Casa Protegida Julia de Burgos: https://www.facebook.com/casajuliapr/

Fondos Unidos de Puerto Rico
http://www.fondosunidos.org/

Caritas Puerto Rico
http://www.caritas.org/where-car…/latin-america/puerto-rico/

Fundación Comunitaria de Puerto Rico
https://www.fcpr.org/

Campamento Contra Cenizas de Carbon: https://www.facebook.com/nocenizasdecarbon/

Vieques en Rescate: www.viequesenrescateinc.com

Sierra Club de Puerto Rico: https://www.facebook.com/SierraClubPR/

Proyecto ENLACE del Cano Martin Pena: www.martinpena.org

Campamento Contra La Junta: https://www.facebook.com/CampamentoContraLaJunta/

Jornada Se Acabaron Las Promesas: https://www.facebook.com/seacabaronlaspromesas/

Enlace Latino de Accion Climatica: https://www.facebook.com/ELACPR/

Centro Mujer Barranquitas: https://www.facebook.com/centromujer.barranquitas

Iniciativa Comunitaria
http://www.iniciativacomunitaria.org/

Here's How to Support Puerto Rico as it Recovers From Devastating Hurricane Maria A Category 4 hurricane made landfall in Puerto Rico on Wednesday.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Puerto Rico during this time! We know Hurricane Maria will leave the island with a lot of damage. May the people of the island remain strong!! 🇵🇷❤️💙

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UPR students vote to end two-month strike Campus owes nearly $30,000 in fines for every day gates remain closed after court order to resume the semester

Students from the UPR decide to end their strike

Estudiantes de la UPR de Río Piedras deciden culminar la huelga Los portones abrirán a la medianoche. Revive las incidencias

Puerto Rico’s University Is Paralyzed by Protests and Facing Huge Cuts Students furious over tuition increases and budget cuts at the University of Puerto Rico, the island’s crown jewel, have blocked the gates for nearly two months.

Students in the Rio Piedras campus were told they had to open up the campus gates today by 2 pm so they went ahead and put a team together of "watch guards" who are acting to keep authorities from forcing the gates opened.

Today we will meet at 1 pm at the RU AUPP Chapter (11 Stone St, New Brunswick). We will discuss our mission and goals. Students representatives from the UPR Río Piedras campus student movement will join us via Skype. Sorry for the short notice.

The crisis of public education in Puerto Rico spans from the UPR to the K-12 system.

Puerto Rico to close 184 public schools amid economic crisis Puerto Rico is closing 184 public schools in a move expected to save millions of dollars amid a deep economic crisis

A few updates:
1. Five students from the UPR presented a lawsuit to the Court of Appeal's against the Student Council and the student strike. The Court decided in favor of the petitioners and today students were ordered to suspend the strike.
2. Yesterday, the UPR-RP students held a general assembly and decided to continue the strike, regardless of the court ruling.

Puerto Rican Students Strike Against Court Order San Juan, May 9 (Prensa Latina) Some student leaders have stated that they will not abide by the Court of Appeal''s determination to end the 40-day strike this week at the University of Puerto Rico''s (UPR) Rio Piedras campus.

"Compounding the fiscal crisis, Puerto Rico is also in the midst of a shift in demographics. The island’s public K-12 system is currently serving half the number of students it served when schools were at peak enrollment. Fewer children are being born, and others are leaving the island as part of the largest mass exodus the island has seen since the 1940s. The island has lost 10 percent of its population since 2000, according to the Pew Research Center."

Puerto Rico’s Financial Crisis Wallops University System Puerto Rico’s fiscal control board is proposing to cut the university system’s budget by nearly half by 2021. As a result, the stakes are higher than ever for UPR’s future.

Puerto Rico’s $123 Billion Bankruptcy Is the Cost of U.S. Colonialism The colonial relationship that has prevailed between the U.S. and Puerto Rico since 1898 is no longer viable.

Puerto Rico has announced plans to close 179 public schools just days after filing for a form of bankruptcy protection. But even with more austerity, says Juan González, the island cannot pay bondholders the billions they are owed: "The fundamental issue, that this colonial situation between the United States and Puerto Rico is no longer viable—it is economically impossible to sustain—is the issue that will have to be resolved over the coming months."

Puerto Rico's Financial Future Now in the Hands of a Single Judge Overseeing Massive Bankruptcy Puerto Rico has announced plans to close 179 public schools just days after filing for a form of bankruptcy protection, seeking to restructure $123 billion in debt and pension obligations, in the largest local government insolvency in U.S. history. The move is likely to slash money for healthcare, p...

"Ultimately this crisis may be a wakeup call for Puerto Ricans, as the territorial experiment is reaching a critical point. The glossed-over territorial status created by the US in the mid-20th century – Puerto Rico’s Estado Libre Asociado, or Commonwealth – has been seriously undermined by the territory’s fiscal crisis. It is clear that being in a political middle ground is the worst of all worlds for Puerto Rico. It is a ground where there is serious risk of becoming another Greece."

Puerto Rico's debt crisis is a wake-up call. It could be crushed like Greece | Martin Guzman Puerto Rico’s future is not in the hands of its people, but in the hands of a group of non-elected technocrats, that as such are not accountable to Puerto Ricans

Let's Turn the Puerto Rican Day Parade Into a March for Justice! We, the undersigned, call on the Board of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade to convert this year's parade into a march for justice in solidarity with the Puerto Rican people. It should be led by freedom fighter Oscar Lopez Rivera and the students of the University of Puerto...

According to this article, UPR students will determine the future of the semester during an upcoming student assembly meeting. Said meeting is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, 10 May 2017.

UPR-RP decidirá el futuro del semestre en su próxima asamblea

Puerto Rico has been faced with lawsuits because of the lack of reaching agreements. Students at UPR and other schools will be affected by the lawsuits. Continue to stay tuned to this page for updates and don't forget to share the page and our contents.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/puerto-rico-hit-with-lawsuit-after-litigation-freeze-expires-1493732250

Puerto Rico Hit With Lawsuit After Litigation Freeze Expires Bondholders filed to sue Puerto Rico Tuesday in the first legal challenge that hit the U.S. territory after a freeze on litigation that protected it from lawsuits expired amid a deep economic crisis.

Quick update: Today, the acting dean of UPR-Río Piedras announced that administrative work will resume tomorrow in buildings outside of said campus. Students are currently organizing a picket line in front of these buildings. No other changes have been made their schedule and there are no plans to abandon the campground or open the campus barricades.

Rutgers community rallies in support of School of Engineering junior facing deportation Over 100 students gathered at Voorhees Mall Monday afternoon to rally in support of Carimer Andujar, a School of Engineering junior facing deportation. The rally was also a part of A Day Without Immigrants.