Puerto Ricans are in outrage on social media with a new advertising campaign called “Live Boricua,” which features a white family with blonde hair on the beach. Some call it a blatant whitewash of the people and their culture.
Controversy
Snowmen and sleighs are so last season!😎 Drop a ☀️ if you’re ready to celebrate these holidays from #PuertoRico’s warm and golden shores.🎄🇵🇷 #FeeltheWarmth #DiscoverPuertoRico https://t.co/ETZJuQdHyH pic.twitter.com/Q9WkwDkHML
— Discover Puerto Rico (@discover_PR) November 16, 2022
The campaign is also controversial as it encourages people outside Puerto Rico to relocate to the island. Puerto Ricans are also facing a real estate crisis, as natives find it harder to survive and lose their homes.
Hurricane Maria & Fiona
Puerto Ricans, or “Boricuas,” come in all colors, shapes, and sizes, but the argument is that the ad should represent the majority. And the majority of boricuas are of brown skin. The campaign doesn’t represent the island’s rich history and diverse culture.
The campaign also comes when natural disasters have brought the island to its knees. The aftermath of this summer’s Hurricane Fiona left people without water and electricity for days and months. Other parts of the island never recovered from Hurricane Maria back in 2017, which has caused catastrophic damage that’s been very difficult for the people of Puerto Rico to recover from.
It has been 1 month since Hurricane Fiona and 33 people have died in Puerto Rico, according to the Health Dept. Some of those are due to “indirect” causes like lack of electricity.
In case it hasn’t been said enough before: reliable electricity is a matter of life or death.
— Bianca Graulau (@bgraulau) October 18, 2022
Locals still suffer and awaiting relief, so investors have made their way to the island. Naturally, they are taking advantage of the tax breaks and beautiful views to go along with them.