Reviews
Palante: Young Lords Party by Michael Abramson, Young Lords Party, Iris Morales, Michael Abramson
contrabandit's review against another edition
5.0
Absolutely loved learning about Puerto Ricans' history in this country. Loved the direct action, the 13 point plan, the roots of our fight for freedoms. If you're Puerto Rican, have Puerto Rican heritage, or just want to learn about Latine's struggles in mainland USA, this is a wonderful catalog.
ivanainthecity's review against another edition
The Young Lords Organization started as a Puerto Rican street gang/activist group in Chicago in the late 1960s. This book focuses on the New York City chapter of the Young Lords, which started in 1969 and took inspiration from the Black Panther Party, establishing its own 13 Point Program. The goals of the Young Lords Party included liberating Puerto Rico, the world’s oldest colony, from imperialism; self-determination for all Latinos and ~Third World people~; eliminating racism & machismo; establishing a socialist society with community control of institutions & land; & building an educational system that centered Puerto Ricans’ Afro-Indigenous heritage.
The Young Lords (YL) staunchly believed in taking matters into their own hands & using armed defense to achieve their goals. The NYC YL were frustrated with the lack of community support & took over churches & hospitals to provide food & healthcare options for the people. They published their own bilingual newspaper, Palante (which roughly translates to ~onwards~) to educate folks about these issues.
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I’m embarrassed to admit that this is the first nonfiction (nonmemoir) book I’ve read about Puerto Ricans— & I’m a nonfiction lover 🥸. What I love about this book is that the YL make a damn good case for why it’s important for us Puerto Ricans to know our history… and to reimagine what could be. Being from a colony can really mess up people’s spirits, but this book gives me hope. In the words of Pablo “Yoruba” Guzmán:
“Being a Lord is not about ~accepting~ life—that’s what we’ve been taught, to accept life, to accept the shit way it is, because we ain’t got the power to change nothing. Being a Lord is about saying, ‘Now that I know where things are at, I’m equipped to go out there and change the motherfucker. Go out there and meet it head on, take it, see, and defeat it.’”
The Young Lords (YL) staunchly believed in taking matters into their own hands & using armed defense to achieve their goals. The NYC YL were frustrated with the lack of community support & took over churches & hospitals to provide food & healthcare options for the people. They published their own bilingual newspaper, Palante (which roughly translates to ~onwards~) to educate folks about these issues.
~~
I’m embarrassed to admit that this is the first nonfiction (nonmemoir) book I’ve read about Puerto Ricans— & I’m a nonfiction lover 🥸. What I love about this book is that the YL make a damn good case for why it’s important for us Puerto Ricans to know our history… and to reimagine what could be. Being from a colony can really mess up people’s spirits, but this book gives me hope. In the words of Pablo “Yoruba” Guzmán:
“Being a Lord is not about ~accepting~ life—that’s what we’ve been taught, to accept life, to accept the shit way it is, because we ain’t got the power to change nothing. Being a Lord is about saying, ‘Now that I know where things are at, I’m equipped to go out there and change the motherfucker. Go out there and meet it head on, take it, see, and defeat it.’”
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