Why is it that Puerto Rico is a state, but it is not a state like the other fifty states in the United States? What is the relevancy of this subject to the present state of affairs of the Puerto Rican population in the United States? Are the rights of children violated by this gray reality?
We stumbled upon this subject by accident. But are there really accidents when we talk about the heart of a young population who dream about a tropical land as home, and who at the same time cannot formulate, at least some of them, with clarity their place of origin? I asked a student where he was from. He answered Puerto Rico, but he added that he was born in the United States.
Activities:
Make a map of Puerto Rico and another of the United States. Compare populations, size, and economy. Discover how Puerto Rico became to be in the political situation at present. What would you do to chance things. Is the present situation in the best interests of the children of Puerto Rican families in the Island? in the United States?
Activity:
White about a case similar to the one about Maria B. How would the best interests of children like Maria in case number one be better served? Could this be taken to court? Who would you sue? There must be a way to prevent this from happening again. White about it.
Assessment:
Follow methodology in lesson one adapting material to pertinent subject matter in this lesson.
It is fair to ask whether children should have the power of voting on these issues that affect them directly. But then again we find ourselves back to our original postulation about the language of rights and obligations. A person should be able to vote if that person understands the language and the consequences of the vote. A person must understand the rights and obligations of society and should have a clear idea of the power of voting. Further a student in the elementary school doesn’t pay taxes and it seems that it might be difficult to understand the real value of money i.e. the allocation of tax money for a certain program. A person, an adult who advocates the rights of children might find a point of compromise. Perhaps a student might gain access to voting by sheer virtue of his or her grades; access to voting by their leadership in school and the community; by their ability to prevent violence.
