While 1998 marked the 100th anniversary of the United States' invasion and takeover of Puerto Rico, it wasn't until 1999 that the island's political movements reappeared on the radar screen of the American people. That year, two major developments occurred that transformed the relationship between Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.: the limited clemency granted by then-President Clinton to eleven Puerto Rican Nationalists, and the death of Puerto Rican civilian security guard David Sanes, killed by missile fragments from U.S. naval bombing tests on the island municipality of Vieques. How does Vieques fit into the political future of Puerto Rico? While anti-Navy protesters are careful not to mix the island's political status options with their battle against the Navy, it is important to understand the role Washington has played in shaping Puerto Rico's current reality and how it has allowed the Navy to use Vieques as a bombing range for 60 years. It also helps one begin to predict what is the future of Puerto Rico. Is it to be a colony? Fifty-first state of the United States? Sovereign nation? In Islands of Resistance, Mario A. Murillo approaches these questions by examining how Puerto Rican politics have been shaped as much by 100 years of U.S. economic, military, and cultural domination of the territory, as by the enduring grassroots resistance of the Puerto Rican people. Islands of Resistance puts the contemporary situation in Puerto Rico into an historic context that will help people understand what is at stake in Vieques, not only for Viequenses, but for Puerto Ricans, both on the island and in the diaspora.

After more than sixty years of occupation by the U.S. Navy and intensive community struggles, the Puerto Rican island of Vieques was finally returned to civilian control in 2003. But, as this book documents, the Viequenses’ struggles were far form over after the departure of the Navy. The Viequenses were left to contend with the devastating effects of sixty-two years of bombing; the environment and health of the population had been severely harmed. Yet this was a minor issue in comparison to the effects of the newly instated tourism industry on the island. Drawing from ethnographic research conducted between 2004 to 2016, Luis Galanes Valldejuli captures the larger social conflict derived from the arrival of tourists, who brought change to the island in the form of land speculation, work conflicts, racism, language barriers, and neoliberalism. A close observer of the Viequenses, Valldejuli details the deleterious effects of tourism on the voice of the Viequenses: they were no longer heard. This book is recommended for scholars of anthropology, tourism studies, linguistics, cultural geography, political science, and history.

The definitive guide, now fully updated, to the three most popular destinations in Puerto Rico. No matter your budget, tastes, or passions, Puerto Rico has something to please your senses and wish you could come back for more. Author Zain Deane takes you on a tour of San Juan and its main islands and shows you how to uncover its best-kept secrets and treasures—from breathtaking beaches and rain forest hikes to extraordinary shopping and dining spots on narrow colonial streets. Puerto Rico has something to please all your senses, regardless of your budget, tastes, or passions. Distinctive for their accuracy, simplicity, and conversational tone, the diverse travel guides in our Explorer's Great Destinations series meet the conflicting demands of the modern traveler. They're packed full of up-to-date information to help plan the perfect getaway. And they're compact and light enough to come along for the ride. A tool you'll turn to before, during, and after your trip, these guides include chapters on lodging, dining, transportation, history, shopping, recreation, and more; a section packed with practical information, such as lists of banks, hospitals, post offices, laundromats, numbers for police, fire, and rescue, and other relevant information; maps of regions and locales, and more.

Experience with Sgt. Elbo Janes and Cpl. T.V. Bennett the explosion of an atomic bomb at Desert Rock, Nevada. Sail with them to Vieques Island, Puerto Rico on Navy ships. Meet John, the Merchant of Vieques, who came to Radio Hill on horseback bringing orange pop, bread, or a woman in a red dress. Watch as Banshee fighter planes off the Carrier USS Midway, strafe, shell and spread fiery Napalm on the Eastern end of Vieques. Take an inside look at the fun, the fights and the loves of these Marines on liberty in New York, San Juan and Havana. Laugh at some of their escapades as they try to live up to their own motto: "Hell, we're Marines: We can do anything we want to do!" Share in their growth as individuals and the building of life-long friendships.

Katherine T. McCaffrey gives a complete analysis of the troubled relationship between the U.S. Navy and island residents. She explores such topics as the history of U.S. naval involvement in Vieques; a grassroots mobilization-led by fishermen-that began in the 1970s; how the navy promised to improve the lives of the island residents-and failed; and the present-day emergence of a revitalized political activism that has effectively challenged naval hegemony.

At age forty, Parker surrendered to her Swept Away meets Swiss Family Robinson fantasy of running an inn far from her home in the Pacific Northwest. For the next twenty-plus years Parker ran La Finca Caribe, an eco-lodge in Vieques, Puerto Rico. What started as a rough-and-tumble dream grew into a paradise enjoyed by guests from around the world. Sketchbook in hand, Parker chronicled her daily adventures living with the land. La Finca is a lively graphic memoir about a woman creating a new life amid countless challenges, including hurricanes that led her to reconsider everything. It is a story about trusting oneself, self-discovery, accepting disappointment and loss, and falling in love with a place.