Puerto Rican women in the military - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Puerto Rican women in the military
First row: Carmen Contreras-Bozak Carmen Contreras-Bozak Tech4 Carmen Contreras-Bozak was the first Hispanic to serve in the U.S. Women's Army Corps where she served as an interpreter and in numerous administrative positions.-Early years:... Carmen Lozano Dumler Carmen García Rosado Second row: Maria Rodriguez DentonRose Franco Rose Franco CWO3 Rose Franco , a Puerto Rican, was the first Hispanic woman to become a Chief Warrant Officer in the United States Marine Corps.-Early years:... Hila Levy Hila Levy First Lieutenant Hila Levy is an officer in the United States Air Force who made history in 2007 when she became the first Puerto Rican to be awarded a Rhodes scholarship.-Early years:... Third row: Frances M. Vega Frances M. Vega SPC Frances M. Vega, also known as "That Girl Benitez" , was the first female soldier of Puerto Rican descent to die in a combat zone in Operation Iraqi Freedom.-Early years:... Lizbeth Robles Lizbeth Robles SPC Lizbeth Robles , was a female soldier born in Puerto Rico that died in Operation Iraqi Freedom.-Early years:... Aleina Ramirez Gonzalez Location of the island of Puerto Rico (green)

One of the least known roles played by Puerto Rican women has been that of revolutionists and soldiers. This is a brief account of some the Puerto Rican women who have participated in military actions either as members of a political revolutionary movement or the Armed Forces of the United States

Military of the United States

The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...

Background

When Puerto Rico was a Spanish Colony, Puerto Rican women were commonly known for their roles as mothers and housekeepers. Women's rights

Women's rights

Women's rights are entitlements and freedoms claimed for women and girls of all ages in many societies.In some places these rights are institutionalized or supported by law, local custom, and behaviour, whereas in others they may be ignored or suppressed...

were unheard of and their contributions to the islands' society were limited. However, women in Puerto Rico began to express themselves with their literary work during the 19th century. Among these women was Maria Bibiana Benitez

María Bibiana Benítez

María Bibiana Benítez , was Puerto Rico's first known female poet and one of its first playwrights.-Early years:...

who was Puerto Rico's first poetess and playwright. In 1832, she published her first poem "La Ninfa de Puerto Rico" and her niece, Alejandrina Benitez de Gautier

Alejandrina Benitez de Gautier

Alejandrina Benítez de GautierThis name uses Spanish marriage naming customs; the first is the maiden family name "Benítez" and the second or matrimonial family name is "Gautier". is considered by many to be one of Puerto Rico's greatest poets.-Early years:Benítez de Gautier, born in Mayagüez,...

, whose "Aguinaldo Puertorriqueño" was published in 1843, gave her the recognition of being one of the island's great poets.

During the 20th century, some of the women in the island became active as union organizers, such as in the case of Luisa Capetillo

Luisa Capetillo

Luisa Capetillo was one of Puerto Rico's most famous labor organizers. She was also a writer and an anarchist who fought for workers and women's rights.-Early years:...

and involved in politics, as was the case of Felisa Rincón de Gautier

Felisa Rincón de Gautier

Felisa Rincón de GautierThis name uses Spanish marriage naming customs; the first is the maiden family name "Rincón" and the second or matrimonial family name is "Gautier"...

.

Even though women in the past had actively participated in the revolt against Spain, it wouldn't be until the United States entered World War II that the military would open its doors to Puerto Rican women.

La Rogativa

According to a popular Puerto Rican legend, British

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

troops were besieging San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...

on the night of April 30, 1797. The townswomen, led by a bishop, formed a rogativa (prayer procession) and marched throughout the streets of the city singing hymns and carrying torches while at the same time praying for the deliverance of the City. Outside the walls, the invaders mistook the torch-lit movement for the arrival of Spanish reinforcements. When morning came, they were gone from the island and the city was saved from a possible invasion. Four statues, sculptured by Lindsay Daen

Lindsay Daen

Lindsay Daen , was a New Zealand sculptor and artist who worked and resided in Puerto Rico. Daen created landmark sculptures in Puerto Rico, Australia and the United States...

in the Plazuela de la Rogativa (Rogativa Plaza) in Old San Juan, pay tribute to the bishop and townswomen who participated in La Rogativa.

Revolt against Spain

The first Puerto Rican woman to become a political activist who was the first female from Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

"Independentista" meaning that she was the woman to become an avid advocate of the Puerto Rican Independence against Spanish rule was María de las Mercedes Barbudo

María de las Mercedes Barbudo

María de las Mercedes Barbudo was a political activist who was the first Puerto Rican female "Independentista", meaning that she was the first Puerto Rican woman to become an avid advocate of Puerto Rican Independence or "Freedom Fighter"...

. Mercedes Barbudo joined forces with the Venezuelan government, under the leadership of Simon Bolivar

Simón Bolívar

Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios Ponte y Yeiter, commonly known as Simón Bolívar was a Venezuelan military and political leader...

, to lead an insurrection against the Spanish colonial forces in Puerto Rico. However, her plans were discovered by the Spanish authorities and she was arrested and exiled from Puerto Rico never to return.

Puerto Rico had witnessed various slave revolts and minor calls for independence from Spain during its history, but none compared to what was to become known as El Grito de Lares
Grito de Lares
El Grito de Lares —also referred as the Lares uprising, the Lares revolt, Lares rebellion or even Lares Revolution—was the first major revolt against Spanish rule and call for independence in Puerto Rico...

. This call for independence was organized by a group of prominent Puerto Ricans led by Dr. Ramón Emeterio Betances

Ramón Emeterio Betances

Ramón Emeterio Betances y Alacán was a Puerto Rican nationalist. He was the primary instigator of the Grito de Lares revolution, and as such, is considered to be the father of the Puerto Rican independence movement...

and Segundo Ruiz Belvis

Segundo Ruiz Belvis

Segundo Ruiz Belvis , was a dedicated abolitionist who also fought for Puerto Rico's right to independence.-Early years:...

. Hundreds of men, slaves and women participated in the short-lived revolution.. Of all the women who participated in the revolt, two have become part of Puerto Rican legend and lore:

Lola Rodríguez de Tio
Lola Rodríguez de Tio
Lola Rodríguez de TióThis name uses Spanish marriage naming customs; the first is the maiden family name " Rodríguez" and the second or matrimonial family name is "Tió"., , was the first Puerto Rican born poetess to establish herself a reputation as a great poet throughout all of Latin America...

believed in the cause of furthering women's rights and equality, the abolition of slavery and she actively participated in the Puerto Rican Independence Movement

Puerto Rican independence movement

The Puerto Rican independence movement refers to initiatives throughout the history of Puerto Rico aimed at obtaining independence for the Island, first from Spain, and then from the United States...

. Inspired by Ramón Emeterio Betances's quest for Puerto Rico's independence and by the attempted revolution called the Grito de Lares, she wrote the patriotic lyrics to the existing tune of La Borinqueña

La Borinqueña

La Borinqueña is the official anthem of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. After Puerto Rico became the "The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico" in 1952, the first elected governor, Luis Muñoz Marín, signed law #2 of July 24, 1952 that stated that the musical composition known as "La Borinqueña" was to...

Mariana Bracetti
Mariana Bracetti
Mariana Bracetti was a patriot and leader of the Puerto Rico independence movement in the 1860s. She is attributed with having knitted the flag that was intended to be used as the national emblem of Puerto Rico in its attempt to overthrow the Spanish government on the island, and to establish the...

, "Brazo de Oro" (Golden Arm), was the sister-in-law of revolution leader Manuel Rojas. Bracetti knitted the Lares Revolutionary Flag, taking into consideration suggestions made by Betances. Upon the failure of the revolution, Bracetti was imprisoned in Arecibo

Arecibo

Arecibo may refer to:*Arecibo, Puerto Rico, a municipality located by the Atlantic Ocean*Arecibo Observatory, a very sensitive radio telescope located approximately south-southwest from the city of Arecibo...

along with the other survivors and later released.

World War I

Spain ceded Puerto Rico to the United States in accordance to the agreement reached in the 1898 Treaty of Paris which officially ended the Spanish-American War

Spanish-American War

The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...

. In 1917, with the advent of World War I, the United States approved the Jones-Shafroth Act

Jones-Shafroth Act

The Jones–Shafroth Act was a 1917 Act of the United States Congress by which Puerto Ricans were collectively made U.S. citizens, the people of Puerto Rico were empowered to have a popularly-elected Senate, established a bill of rights, and authorized the election of a Resident Commissioner to a...

which conferred U.S. citizenship

United States nationality law

Article I, section 8, clause 4 of the United States Constitution expressly gives the United States Congress the power to establish a uniform rule of naturalization. The Immigration and Naturalization Act sets forth the legal requirements for the acquisition of, and divestiture from, citizenship of...

on Puerto Ricans. Puerto Ricans, with the exception of the women, were eligible for the draft.

When the United States entered World War I, the U.S. Army Medical Corps

Army Medical Department (United States)

The Army Medical Department of the U.S. Army – known as the AMEDD – comprises the Army's six medical Special Branches of officers and medical enlisted soldiers. It was established as the "Army Hospital" in July 1775 to coordinate the medical care required by the Continental Army during the...

believed that they had enough male physicians to cover their needs. By 1918, the Army realized that there was a shortage of physicians specializing in anesthesia

Anesthesia

Anesthesia, or anaesthesia , traditionally meant the condition of having sensation blocked or temporarily taken away...

, a low-salary specialty required in the military operating rooms. Therefore, the Army reluctantly began hiring women physicians as civilian contract employees. One of the first civilian doctors contracted by the Army was a Puerto Rican woman, who despite the fact that she was not an active member of the military, contributed with her professional skills to the war effort.

Dr. Dolores Piñero
Dolores Piñero
Dr. Dolores Piñero, was one of the first four Puerto Rican women to earn a medical degree. She was also one of the first civilian doctors, and the first Puerto Rican female doctor to serve under contract in the U.S. Army during World War I...

, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, was the first Puerto Rican woman doctor to serve in the Army under contract. In 1913, Dr. Piñero had earned her medical degree from the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Boston, Massachusetts. She set up her medical and anesthesia practice in what was then the town of Río Piedras (it is now a section of San Juan). Upon the outbreak of World War I, she applied for a position as a contract surgeon only to be turned down. After writing a letter to the Army Surgeon General in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

explaining her intentions, she received a telegram ordering her to report to Camp Las Casas

Camp Las Casas

Camp Las Casas was a United States military instalation established in Santurce, Puerto Rico in 1904. The camp was the main training base of the "Porto Rico Regiment of Infantry," On January 15, 1899, the military government changed the name of Puerto Rico to Porto Rico a segregated U.S...

at Santurce, Puerto Rico. On October 1918, She signed her contract with the Army.

She was assigned to the San Juan base hospital where she worked as an anesthesiologist during the mornings and in the laboratory during the afternoons. Dr. Piñero and four male colleagues received orders to open a 400-bed hospital in Ponce, Puerto Rico

Ponce, Puerto Rico

Ponce is both a city and a municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.The city of Ponce, the fourth most populated in Puerto Rico, and the most populated outside of the San Juan metropolitan area, is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the...

, to care for the patients who had been infected with the influenza

Influenza

Influenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...

or as it was also known "the Swine Flu". The Swine Flu

Swine flu

Swine influenza, also called pig influenza, swine flu, hog flu and pig flu, is an infection by any one of several types of swine influenza virus. Swine influenza virus or S-OIV is any strain of the influenza family of viruses that is endemic in pigs...

had swept through Army camps and training posts around the world, infecting one quarter of all soldiers and killing more than 55,000 American troops. After the flu epidemic ended, Dr. Piñero was ordered back to the Army base hospital at San Juan. Dr. Dolores Piñero returned to her private practice in Río Piedras after her contract was terminated at the end of the war.

World War II

When the United States entered World War II, the military was in need of nurses. Puerto Rican nurses wanted to volunteer for service, however they were not accepted into the Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

or Navy Nurse Corps

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

. As a result, many of the island's women work force migrated to the mainland U.S. to work in the factories which produced military equipment.

In 1944, the Army sent recruiters to the island to recruit no more than 200 women for the Women's Army Corps

Women's Army Corps

The Women's Army Corps was the women's branch of the US Army. It was created as an auxiliary unit, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps on 15 May 1942 by Public Law 554, and converted to full status as the WAC in 1943...

(WAC). Over 1,000 applications were received for the unit which was to be composed of only 200 women. The Puerto Rican WAC unit, Company 6, 2nd Battalion, 21st Regiment of the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps, a segregated Hispanic unit, was assigned to the Port of Embarkation of New York City, after their basic training at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia

Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia

Fort Oglethorpe is a city in Catoosa County in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 9,263. It is part of the Chattanooga, TN–GA Metropolitan Statistical Area...

. They were assigned to work in military offices which planned the shipment of troops around the world. Among them was PFC Carmen García Rosado
Carmen García Rosado
PFC Carmen García Rosado is an educator, author and activist for the rights of women veterans who was among the first 200 Puerto Rican women to be recruited into the WAC's during World War II...

, who in 2006, authored and published a book titled "LAS WACS-Participacion de la Mujer Boricua en la Segunda Guerra Mundial" (The WACs-The participation of the Puerto Rican women in the Second World War), the first book to document the experiences of the first 200 Puerto Rican women who participated in said conflict. According to García Rosado, one of the hardships which Puerto Rican women in the military were subject to was the social and racial discrimination, which at the time was rampant in the United States against the Latino community.

That same year the Army Nurse Corps (ANC) decided to accept Puerto Rican nurses. Thirteen women submitted applications, were interviewed, underwent physical examinations, and were accepted into the ANC. Eight of these nurses were assigned to the Army Post at San Juan, where they were valued for their bilingual abilities. Five nurses were assigned to work at the hospital at Camp Tortuguero, Puerto Rico. The Navy also recruited a small number of Puerto Rican women as members of the Navy Women's Reserve known as WAVES

WAVES

The WAVES were a World War II-era division of the U.S. Navy that consisted entirely of women. The name of this group is an acronym for "Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service" ; the word "emergency" implied that the acceptance of women was due to the unusual circumstances of the war and...

(Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) during World War II. Among the women who served in the military and distinguished themselves were:

Tech4 Carmen Contreras-Bozak
Carmen Contreras-Bozak
Tech4 Carmen Contreras-Bozak was the first Hispanic to serve in the U.S. Women's Army Corps where she served as an interpreter and in numerous administrative positions.-Early years:...

(born December 31, 1919 in Cayey, Puerto Rico

Cayey, Puerto Rico

Cayey is a mountain town in central Puerto Rico located on the Central Mountain range, north of Salinas and Guayama; south of Cidra and Caguas; east of Aibonito and Salinas; and west of San Lorenzo Cayey is spread over 21 wards and Cayey Pueblo...

), was the first Hispanic

Hispanic

Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...

to serve in the U.S. Women's Army Corps as an interpreter and in numerous administrative positions. She arrived in Northern Africa on January 27, 1943 and rendered overseas duties in Algiers

Algiers

' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...

within General Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...

's theatre headquarters. Her responsibilities included the transmission of encoded messages to the battlefield.

Second Lieutenant Carmen Lozano Dumler (born 1924 in San Juan, Puerto Rico), was one of the first Puerto Rican women to become a United States Army officer. In 1945, Lozano Dumler was assigned to the 359th Station Hospital of Ft. Read, Trinidad & Tobago, British West Indies, where she attended wounded soldiers who had returned from Normandy

Normandy

Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...

, France.

Lieutenant Maria Rodriguez Denton (United States Navy

United States Navy

), born June 14, 1909 in the town of Guanica, Puerto Rico

Guánica, Puerto Rico

Guánica is a municipality in southwestern Puerto Rico located on southern coast, bordering the Caribbean Sea, south of Sabana Grande, east of Lajas, and west of Yauco. It is part of the Yauco Metropolitan Statistical Area....

, was the first woman from Puerto Rico who became an officer in the United States Navy as member of the WAVES

WAVES

. The Navy assigned Denton as a library assistant at the Cable and Censorship Office in New York City. It was Lt. Denton who forwarded the news (through channels) to President Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...

that the war had ended.

One of Puerto Rico's greatest composers of Bolero

Bolero

Bolero is a form of slow-tempo Latin music and its associated dance and song. There are Spanish and Cuban forms which are both significant and which have separate origins.The term is also used for some art music...

s, Sylvia Rexach
Sylvia Rexach
Sylvia Rexach , was a comedy scriptwriter, poet, singer and composer of boleros .-Early years:Rexach was born and raised in Santurce, Puerto Rico. There she attended public school and received her primary education...

, dropped-out of the University of Puerto Rico

University of Puerto Rico

The University of Puerto Rico is the state university system of Puerto Rico. The system consists of 11 campuses and has approximately 64,511 students and 5,300 faculty members...

in 1942 and joined the United States Army

United States Army

as a member of the WACS where she served as an office clerk. She served until 1945, when was honorably discharged.

Marie Teresa Rios
Marie Teresa Rios
Marie Teresa Ríos, also Marie Teresa Ríos Versace, was the Puerto Rican - American author of a book which was the basis for the 1960s television sitcom, The Flying Nun. Ríos was the mother of Humbert Roque Versace, the first U.S...

was a renowned Puerto Rican writer who also served in World War II. Rios, mother of Medal of Honor

Medal of Honor

The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...

recipient, Capt. Humbert Roque Versace

Humbert Roque Versace

Captain Humbert Roque "Rocky" Versace was a United States Army officer of Puerto Rican-Italian descent who was awarded the United States' highest military decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his heroic actions while a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. He was the first member of...

and author of The Fifteenth Pelican which was the basis for the popular 1960s television sitcom "The Flying Nun

The Flying Nun

The Flying Nun is an American sitcom produced by Screen Gems for ABC based on the 1965 book The Fifteenth Pelican, by Tere Rios, which starred Sally Field as Sister Bertrille...

", drove Army trucks and buses. She also served as a pilot for the Civil Air Patrol

Civil Air Patrol

Civil Air Patrol is a Congressionally chartered, federally supported, non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force . CAP is a volunteer organization with an aviation-minded membership that includes people from all backgrounds, lifestyles, and...

. Rios Versace wrote and edited for various newspapers around the world, including places such as Guam

Guam

Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...

, Germany, Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

, and South Dakota

South Dakota

South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...

, and publications such the Armed Forces Star & Stripes
Stars and Stripes (newspaper)
Stars and Stripes is a news source that operates from inside the United States Department of Defense but is editorially separate from it. The First Amendment protection which Stars and Stripes enjoys is safeguarded by Congress to whom an independent ombudsman, who serves the readers' interests,...

and Gannett.

Revolt against the United States

The Puerto Rican Nationalist Party

Puerto Rican Nationalist Party

The Puerto Rican Nationalist Party was founded on September 17, 1922. Its main objective is to work for Puerto Rican Independence.In 1919, José Coll y Cuchí, a member of the Union Party of Puerto Rico, felt that the Union Party was not doing enough for the cause of Puerto Rican independence and he...

, organized on September 17, 1922, became the largest independence group in Puerto Rico by the 1930s. The party under the leadership of Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos

Pedro Albizu Campos

Don Pedro Albizu Campos was a Puerto Rican politician and one of the leading figures in the Puerto Rican independence movement. He was the leader and president of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party from 1930 until his death...

, a former Army Lieutenant, opted against electoral participation and advocated violent revolution.

The women's branch of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party was called the Daughters of Freedom. Some of the militants of this organization included Julia de Burgos

Julia de Burgos

Julia Constancia Burgos García is considered by many as the greatest poet to have been born in Puerto Rico, and along with Gabriela Mistral, is considered as one of the greatest female poets of Latin America...

, considered by many as the greatest poet to have been born in Puerto Rico, Dr. Margot Arce de Vázquez

Margot Arce de Vázquez

Dr. Margot Arce de Vázquez was a writer, essayist and educator who founded the Puerto Rican Academy of the Spanish Language.-Early years:...

, a writer, essayist and educator who founded the Puerto Rican Academy of the Spanish Language, and Dr. Olga Viscal Garriga

Olga Viscal Garriga

Dr. Olga Viscal Garriga , was a public orator and political activist. Garriga was an advocate of Puerto Rican independence who was sentenced to 8 years in a United States penitentiary because she refused to recognize the authority of the United States over Puerto Rico.-Early years:Olga Viscal's ...

, who became a student leader and spokesperson of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party's branch in Río Piedras.

Certain dramatic and violent confrontations during the 1930s in which the Nationalist Party partisans were involved led to the call for an uprising against the United States and the eventual attack of the United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

of the 1950s. One of the worst incidents was the Ponce massacre

Ponce massacre

The Ponce massacre occurred on 21 March 1937 when a peaceful march in Ponce, Puerto Rico, by the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party commemorating the ending of slavery in Puerto Rico by the governing Spanish National Assembly in 1873, and coinciding with a protest against the incarceration by the...

on March 21, 1937, when police officers fired upon Nationalists who were participating in a peaceful demonstration. About 100 were wounded and nineteen were killed, among the dead was one woman Maria Hernandez del Rosario and a seven-year-old child, Georgina Maldonado. On October 30, 1950 the Nationalist Party called for a revolt against the United States and uprisings were held in the towns of Ponce

Ponce, Puerto Rico

, Mayagüez

Mayagüez, Puerto Rico

Mayagüez is the eighth-largest municipality of Puerto Rico. Originally founded as "Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria" it is also known as "La Sultana del Oeste" , "Ciudad de las Aguas Puras" , or "Ciudad del Mangó"...

, Naranjito

Naranjito, Puerto Rico

Naranjito is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the central region of the island, south of Toa Alta; north of Barranquitas and Comerío; east of Corozal; and west of Bayamón. Naranjito is spread over 15 wards and Naranjito Pueblo...

, Arecibo

Arecibo, Puerto Rico

Arecibo is a municipality in the northern midwest coast of Puerto Rico and located by the Atlantic Ocean, north of Utuado and Ciales; east of Hatillo; and west of Barceloneta, and Florida. Arecibo is spread over 18 wards and Arecibo Pueblo...

, Utuado

Utuado, Puerto Rico

Utuado is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the central-western mountainous region of the island known as La Cordillera Central. It is located north of Adjuntas and Ponce; south of Hatillo and Arecibo; east of Lares; and west of Ciales and Jayuya. In land area it is the third-largest...

, San Juan

San Juan, Puerto Rico

, and most notably in Jayuya

Jayuya, Puerto Rico

Jayuya is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the mountainous center region of the island, north of Ponce; east of Utuado; and west of Ciales. Jayuya is spread over 18 wards and Jayuya Pueblo...

which became known as the Jayuya Uprising

Jayuya Uprising

The Jayuya Uprising, also known as the Jayuya Revolt or El Grito de Jayuya, refers to a nationalist revolt in the town of Jayuya, Puerto Rico which occurred on October 30, 1950...

. The military intervened and the revolts came to an end after three days on September 2. Two of the most notable women who bore arms against the United States were Blanca Canales and Lolita Lebrón.

Blanca Canales
Blanca Canales
Blanca Canales Torresola was a Puerto Rican nationalist leader. Canales may possibly have been the first woman to have led a revolt against the United States when she led the The Jayuya Uprising.-Early years:...

who is best known for leading the Jayuya Revolt. Canales led her group to the town's plaza where she raised the Puerto Rican flag

Flag of Puerto Rico

The flags of Puerto Rico represent and symbolize the island and people of Puerto Rico. The most commonly used flags of Puerto Rico are the current flag, which represents the people of the commonwealth of Puerto Rico; municipal flags, which represent the different regions of the island; political...

and declared Puerto Rico to be a Republic. She was arrested and accused of killing a police officer and wounding three others. She was also accused of burning down the local post office. She was sentenced to life imprisonment plus sixty years of jail. In 1967, Canales was given a full pardon by Puerto Rican Governor Roberto Sanchez Vilella

Roberto Sánchez Vilella

Roberto Sánchez Vilella was the second Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico from 1965 to 1969. He was born in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico...

.

Lolita Lebrón
Lolita Lebrón
Dolores "Lolita" Lebrón Sotomayor was a Puerto Rican nationalist who wasconvicted of attempted murder and other crimes after leading an assault on the United States House of Representatives in 1954,...

who was the leader of a group of nationalists who attacked the United States House of Representatives in 1954. Lebrón's mission was to bring world attention to Puerto Rico's independence cause. When Lebrón's group reached the visitor's gallery above the chamber in the House, she stood up and shouted "¡Viva Puerto Rico Libre!" ("Long live a Free Puerto Rico!") and unfurled a Puerto Rican flag. Then the group opened fire with automatic pistols. A popular legend claims that Lebrón fired her shots at the ceiling and missed. In 1979, under international pressure, President Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter

James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...

pardoned Lolita Lebrón and two members of her group, Irving Flores and Rafael Cancel Miranda

Rafael Cancel Miranda

Rafael Cancel Miranda , political activist, is a member of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party and an advocate of Puerto Rican independence. On March 1, 1954, Cancel Miranda together with fellow Nationalists Lolita Lebron, Andres Figueroa Cordero, and Irving Flores Rodriguez entered the United...

1950s and 1960s

After World War II, the Armed Forces of the United States reduced their military personnel. This reduction also applied to the women's military auxiliary units such as the Women's Army Corps, The Navy's WAVES

WAVES

(Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) and the WASP

Women Airforce Service Pilots

The Women Airforce Service Pilots and its predecessor groups the Women's Flying Training Detachment and the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron were pioneering organizations of civilian female pilots employed to fly military aircraft under the direction of the United States Army Air Forces...

(Women Airforce Service Pilots). However, several conflicts such as the Korean War

Korean War

The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...

and the Vietnam War

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

produced a demand for the services of these women.

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Puerto Rican women continued to volunteer for military service.

CWO3 Rose Franco
Rose Franco
CWO3 Rose Franco , a Puerto Rican, was the first Hispanic woman to become a Chief Warrant Officer in the United States Marine Corps.-Early years:...

, born January 22, 1934 in Guánica, Puerto Rico

Guánica, Puerto Rico

, was the first Puerto Rican woman to become a Chief Warrant Officer

Chief Warrant Officer

Chief warrant officer is a military rank used by the Canadian Forces and the Israel Defence Forces.-Canada:In the Canadian Forces, a chief warrant officer or CWO is the most senior non-commissioned member rank in the Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force...

in the U.S. Marine Corps. With the outbreak of the Korean War

Korean War

, Rose surprised her family by announcing that she was leaving college to join the United States Marine Corps. In 1965, Rose was named Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Navy Paul Henry Nitze by the administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson

Lyndon B. Johnson

Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...

.

1st Lieutenant Gloria Esparra Petersen, born May 1, 1927 in the town Barranquitas, Puerto Rico

Barranquitas, Puerto Rico

Barranquitas is a small mountain town located in the central region of Puerto Rico, south of Corozal and Naranjito; north of Coamo and Aibonito; west of Comerío and Cidra; and east of Orocovis. Barranquitas is spread over 6 wards and Barranquitas Pueblo...

, was an Army nurse at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, D.C., during the Korean War.

Captain Julia Benitez Aviles, (January 28, 1912-January 15, 1978) born in Orocovis, Puerto Rico

Orocovis, Puerto Rico

Orocovis is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range, north of Villalba and Coamo; south of Morovis and Corozal; southeast of Ciales; east of Jayuya; and west of Barranquitas...

, was the first Puerto Rican servicewoman to obtain the rank of captain. She joined the Army Nurse Corps in 1950 and served in Occupation Germany; Washington, D.C.; Texas; and Puerto Rico as a nurse anesthetist, retiring in 1964.

Lieutenant Nilda Carrulas Cedero Fuertes, born in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico

Toa Baja, Puerto Rico

Toa Baja is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the northern coast, north of Toa Alta and Bayamón; east of Dorado; and west of Cataño. Toa Baja is spread over 5 wards and Toa Baja Pueblo . It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.Toa Baja considered to be a...

, joined the Army Nurse Corps in 1953, serving on active duty until 1964. She then joined the Reserves, where she served until 1990. Among her assignments in the military was teaching the latest modern nursing techniques to Nicaraguan Army nurses while TDY (on temporary duty) in Nicaragua

Nicaragua

Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...

for six months.

The WAC was disestablished in 1978. Since then, women in the U.S. Army and other branches of the military have served in the same units as men but do not have combat duties.

21st Centuray

Changes within the policy and military structure of the U.S. armed forces helped expand the participation and roles for women in the military, among these the establishment of the All-Volunteer Force in the 1970s. Puerto Rican women have continued to join the Armed Forces and some have even made the military a career.

Colonel Maritza Sáenz Ryan
Maritza Sáenz Ryan
Colonel Maritza Sáenz RyanThis name uses Spanish marriage naming customs; the first is the maiden family name "Sáenz" and the second or matrimonial family name is "Ryan". , is a United States Army officer and the head of the Department of Law at the United States Military Academy...

(U.S. Army) is the head of the Department of Law at the United States Military Academy

United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...

. She is the first woman and first Hispanic

Hispanic

(Puerto Rican father and Spanish other) West Point graduate to serve as an academic department head. She also has the distinction of also being the most senior ranking Hispanic Judge Advocate and has been instrumental in raising awareness of the inequity and impracticality of the Combat Exclusion Policy, which restricts women’s roles and opportunities in the military regardless of talent or ability.

Captain Haydee Javier Kimmich (U.S. Navy) from Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico

Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico

Cabo Rojo is a municipality situated on the southwest coast of Puerto Rico and forms part of the San Germán–Cabo Rojo metropolitan area as well as the larger Mayagüez–San Germán–Cabo Rojo Combined Statistical Area....

, was the highest ranking Hispanic female in the Navy. The naval rank of Captain is the equivalent of Colonel in the other US armed forces. Kimmich was assigned as the Chief of Orthopedics at the Navy Medical Center in Bethesda and reorganized their Reservist Department during Operation Desert Storm. In 1998, she was selected as the woman of the year in Puerto Rico.

Major Sonia Roca born December 4, 1955 in San Juan, was the first Hispanic female officer to attend the Command and General Staff Officer Course at the Army's School of the Americas.

Captain Linda Garcia Cubero
Linda Garcia Cubero
Captain Linda Garcia Cubero is a former United States Air Force officer, of Mexican-American-Puerto Rican descent.In 1980 Cubero was a member of the first class of women to graduate from the United States Air Force Academy, and thus became the first Hispanic woman to graduate from any service...

was the first Hispanic woman graduate of the Air Force Academy in 1980, when the first class with women graduated.

On December 1, 1998, María V. Martínez
María V. Martínez
Command Sergeant Major María V. Martínez is the first Puerto Rican female to reach the rank of Command Sergeant Major in the United States Army. She serves as Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Director of the Army Diversity Office in the Pentagon, Washington D.C....

was promoted to Command Sergeant Major. the first Puerto Rican female to reach said rank in the U.S. Army. She serves as Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Director of the Army Diversity Office in the Pentagon, Washington D.C..

First Lieutenant Hila Levy from Guaynabo, Puerto Rico

Guaynabo, Puerto Rico

Guaynabo is a municipality in the northern part of Puerto Rico, located in the northern coast of the island, north of Aguas Buenas; south of Cataño; east of Bayamón; and west of San Juan...

made history in 2007 when she became the first Puerto Rican Rhodes scholar. As a Cadet in the United States Air Force Academy

United States Air Force Academy

The United States Air Force Academy is an accredited college for the undergraduate education of officer candidates for the United States Air Force. Its campus is located immediately north of Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States...

, she finished as the top graduate, earning the Outstanding Cadet in the Order of Graduation Award and a spot on the academy's 100-year Honor Roll.

Puerto Rican servicewomen have served in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. They were among the 41,000 women who participated in both military operations. They have also served in the battlefields of Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

and Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

. As of July 2007, four Puerto Rican Army women have died in Iraq. They were:

SPC Frances M. Vega
Frances M. Vega
SPC Frances M. Vega, also known as "That Girl Benitez" , was the first female soldier of Puerto Rican descent to die in a combat zone in Operation Iraqi Freedom.-Early years:...

(September 2, 1983 – November 2, 2003), also known as "That Girl Benitez", born in San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...

, was the first female soldier of Puerto Rican descent to die in a combat zone. She was deployed to Iraq in what is known as the War on Terrorism

War on Terrorism

The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...

. On November 2, 2003, a surface-to-air missile

Surface-to-air missile

A surface-to-air missile or ground-to-air missile is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles...

was fired by insurgents

Insurgency

An insurgency is an armed rebellion against a constituted authority when those taking part in the rebellion are not recognized as belligerents...

in Al Fallujah and it hit the U.S. transport helicopter (Chinook) which Vega was in. She was one of 16 soldiers who lost their lives in the crash that followed.

SPC Lizbeth Robles
Lizbeth Robles
SPC Lizbeth Robles , was a female soldier born in Puerto Rico that died in Operation Iraqi Freedom.-Early years:...

(April 4, 1973 – March 1, 2005), born in Vega Baja, Puerto Rico

Vega Baja, Puerto Rico

Vega Baja is a municipality in north central Puerto Rico located in the northern coast, north of Morovis; east of Manatí; and west of Vega Alta. Vega Baja is spread over 13 wards and Vega Baja Pueblo...

, was the first female soldier born in Puerto Rico to die in the War on Terrorism. On March 1, 2005, SPC Lizbeth Robles and Sgt. Julio Negron were riding in a Humvee by the town of Bayji, when they had an accident and the vehicle flipped over. They were rushed to the 228th Combat Support Hospital in Tikrit where both of them later died of the injuries sustained from the accident.

SPC Aleina Ramirez Gonzalez (1972 – April 15, 2005) born in the town of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico

Hormigueros, Puerto Rico

Hormigueros is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the western region of the island, northeast of Cabo Rojo; northwest of San Germán; and south of Mayagüez. Hormigueros is spread over 5 wards and Hormigueros Pueblo...

died in Tikrit, Iraq, when a mortar

Mortar (weapon)

A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....

struck her forward operating base.

Captain Maria Ines Ortiz
María Inés Ortiz
Captain María Inés Ortiz , was the first American nurse to die in combat during Operation Iraqi Freedom and the first Army nurse to die in combat since the Vietnam War.-Early years:...

(1967 – July 10, 2007), born in Camden, New Jersey

Camden, New Jersey

The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...

was the first Puerto Rican nurse to die in combat and first Army nurse to die in Iraq.

The names of these four women along with the others who have perished in Afghanistan

Afghanistan

and Iraq

Iraq

, was engraved in "El Monumento de la Recordación" (Monument of Remembrance), dedicated to Puerto Rico's fallen soldiers and situated in front of the Capitol Building in San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan, Puerto Rico

and unveiled by Puerto Rico Senate President Kenneth McClintock

Kenneth McClintock

Kenneth D. McClintock-Hernández is the current Secretary of State of Puerto Rico. Mr. McClintock served as co-chair of Hillary Clinton presidential campaign's National Hispanic Leadership Council in 2008, co-chaired Clinton's successful Puerto Rico primary campaign that year and served as the...

and PR National Guard Adjutant General Col. David Carrión on Memorial Day

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...

, 2007.

External links

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Background

La Rogativa

Revolt against Spain

World War I

World War II

Revolt against the United States

1950s and 1960s

21st Centuray

Further reading

See also

External links