On the University of Puerto Rico Debt Struggles and Resistance
In 2016, PROMESA law was signed by President Obama to restructure Puerto Rico’s debt. A Federal Oversight Management Board (FOMB) of unelected Wall Street bankers was imposed to control all finances on the islands and renegotiate the debt. Austerity, privatization, hurricanes, earthquakes and a pandemic added to the Puerto Rican crisis. The University of Puerto Rico, as a social project and also as a site of political resistance, has been one of the main targets of the FOMB who has insisted on dismantling it and cutting its budget in half. We will explore the intersectionality between colonialism, debt and the neoliberal education agenda in Puerto Rico and the strategies of resistance from within and beyond the University of Puerto Rico.