After consulting with Puerto Rico statehood leaders and existing organizations both on the island and the mainland United States, the Center for Puerto Rico Equality & Advancement (CPREA) was formed on July 4th, 2006 under the name July 4th, 1899 Foundation to serve as an incubator of ideas and action - a think tank committed to researching and disseminating policy and the promotion of a non-partisan, pro-statehood philosophy and agenda for the people of Puerto Rico.
The Center was inspired by the legacy of Dr. Jose Celso Barbosa, the father of the Puerto Rico statehood movement who championed the quest for Puerto Rican equality through full incorporation as a state of the Union.
MILESTONES
Building Bridges
In October of 2006, the Center held a series of important meetings with island-based pro-statehood leaders, including the President of the Puerto Rico Senate and others, to share its vision and intention to strengthen the effectiveness of the pro-statehood movement in Puerto Rico and the mainland United States. The Center's overtures were well received and the response-in-kind was overwhelming, with unequivocal assurances of support from the island's pro-statehood leadership.
Outreach
On May 4, 2007, the Center joined with other mainland and island-based pro-statehood leaders and organizations for a dialogue with the leadership of a major conservative organization in the United States, the American Conservative Union, in Washington, D.C. This meeting afforded an opportunity to address many widely held misconceptions that exist in the 50 states about Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans, as well as their status as an unincorporated territory. This dialogue entitled What Statehood for Puerto Rico Would Mean for the 50 States and for Puerto Rico - Economically, Politically, and Socially. Was significant because it marked the beginning of a comprehensive, reasoned discussion about the political status quandary of 4 million U.S. citizens trapped in the position of second-class citizenship, who have frequently been seriously hampered in both their individual and collective efforts to realize their full potential as citizens.
Recognizing Leadership
On June 25, 2007 - the Center hosted a reception in New York City for then Congressman Luis G. Fortuño (R-PR). The Center's leadership and supporters gathered to acknowledge the service and commitment of Puerto Rico’s sole elected representative of Puerto Rico in the United States Congress. The Center became a legal entity on November 29, 2007, and is recognized as a domestic nonprofit corporation in the State of New York.
THE WORK OF THE CENTER
The Center is an organization with a clear vision, mission, and objectives - one of civic commitment and passion for Puerto Rico’s future.
The Center is presently engaged in a number of policy-related and educational projects, among them the translation and reproduction of critical literature and scholarly works supportive of representative democracy and statehood for Puerto Rico. Also under development is a comprehensive bibliography of existing economic studies on Puerto Rico.
The Center is at present scheduling various educational forums and economic roundtables that will coincide with an economic white paper designed to serve as the framework for policies that will be recommended to both the U.S. Congress and Puerto Rico's Legislature.