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Puerto Rico - Political Flags - Part II

Last modified: 2021-08-25 by rob raeside
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MINH - Movimiento Independentista Nacional Hostosiano (National Hostosian Independence Movement)

image by Javier Hernandez, 18 March 2006

Movimiento Independentista Nacional Hostosiano (National Hostosian Independence Movement) is a new and larger independence/social justice organization founded by the unification of two other independence/sovereignty groups: the "Congreso Nacional Hostosiano (CNH)" and the "Nuevo Movimiento Independentista Puertorriqueno (NMIP)".   They are not, nor strive to be, a political - electoral party, instead they operate in Civil Society as an autonomous organization. Currently, they are organizing themselves at the national, regional, and municipal levels with "base structures" and "specialized organizations". At the present moment, their website is www.redbetances.com. Logo at capaprieto.tripod.com.
Javier A. Hernandez, 15 April 2005


MST - Movimiento Socialista de Trabajadores (Workers' Socialist Movement)

image by Ivan Sache, 19 January 2005

Photo of the MST flag is at its newspaper.
Ron Lahav and Dov Gutterman, 18 January 2006

The Red Flag (Bandera Roja)

Bandera Roja is the newspaper of the Movimiento Socialista de Trabajadores in Puerto Rico. The eponymous Red Flag, together with various Socialist emblems, can be found on the masthead of the paper, which can be seen at www.bandera.org.
Ron Lahav, 14 December 2005


New Progressive Party (The "Statehood" party)

image by Victor Quinones, 12 February 2000

blue palm tree on white - Statehood party.
Anna Stone Jimanez
, 31 October 1998

The opposing party's (for statehood) symbol is the outline of a palm tree on a blue background. The party's initials are PNP, ("Partido Nuevo Popular"?). Therefore, PPD is the party of the "pava" and PNP is the part of the "palma".
Steve Kramer, 15 December 1998

The New Progressive Party is currently the governing party in Puerto Rico while the PDP and the Independence Party are the opposition. The Spanish translation of the NPP is "Partido Nuevo Progresista" not Partido Nuevo Popular. The flag of the NPP is white with the NPP blue logo in the center. The party motto is "Estadidad, Seguridad, Progreso" or "Statehood, Security, Progress".
Victor Quinones , 12 Febuary 2000

Use of USA Flag with 51 Stars

image by Andy Weir, 11 January 2001

51 star version of the United States flag commonly used by the Puerto Rican statehood movement. I don't know who designed it, but it has been popular among statehood supporters in the island for as long as I can remember.
Victor Quinones, 20 September 2000


Nationalist Party

image by Carlos Torres, 22 January 2003

The PR flag was forbidden in the island from 1898 until 1952, but was flown in defiance by the black-shirted Cadet Corps of the Puerto Rico Nationalist Party. They also had a Cadet Corps' flag all in black with a white Jerusalem Cross in the middle.  The best description of the cross would be a clockwise and a counterclockwise swastika superimposed, leaving a cross made of four "T" shapes joined at the long arm.  The Nationalists went down fighting the Commonwealth's National Guard and Police in 1950, but recently, I've seen honor guards of the PR pro-independence parties wearing the Cadets' black cap/shirt/tie and white trousers uniform, and carrying the Jerusalem Cross flag together with the PR flag. 
Esteban Jimenez, 3 November 2000

The Puerto Rican Nationalist Party of New York (El Partido Nationalista de Puerto Rico, Junta de Nueva York):
Our Cross - The flag of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party (PNPR) bears the organism's insignia. This is composed of a black background with a white cross known as the Cross Potent or Potent Cross in the center. The black color on the background of the Nationalist flag symbolizes the mourning of the Puerto Rican Nation in colonial captivity.
Crux Potent - The cross in itself, is an ancient symbol, utilized forever in all religions and by all nations and it would be a mistake to consider it an exclusive emblem of any particular religion. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived at the sacred land of the Aztecs the found the cross on their altars.
The cross with equal extremes or arms, also known as the Greek Cross, is an ancient symbol, possibly the most ancient of the symbols. The cross is found in every culture, even outside of the Christian conception. It is found in all parts of the world, in prehistoric caves and engraved on rocks. In the symbol of the cross, God and Earth, Father and Mother are combined in harmony. The vertical beam of the cross, stands for the heavenly or spiritual, whereas the horizontal beam represents the material plane of existence.
The intersection of the vertical phalus within the formal uterus form the cross. The cross of initiation is phallic, the insertion of the vertical phallus into the feminine ecteis forms the cross. It is the cross of initiation, which we must carry over our shoulders. With the fourth Arcana of the Tarot, the Being throws over its shoulders the cross of initiation.
The cross has four ends. We understand that each tip is representative of the four cardinal points of the earth: North, South, East and West. They also represent the Age stages: Gold, Silver, Copper, and Iron. The four seasons: Spring, Summer, Winter and Fall. The four faces of the moon: New, Crescent, Half and Full. The four elements: Air, Water, Land and Fire. The four paths: Science, Philosophy, Art and Religion. As we talk about the four paths we must understand that they are all just one. This path is the narrow path of the edge of the blade, the road of the revolution of the conscience.
We understand that by making an effort to give meaning to figures and symbols, is how the spirit manages to elevate to the profound and fundamental conceptions of human intelligence. In this way, the spirit elevates with total independence, free, without anything being dictated to it.
Our symbol and our flag are based on these principles. The Cross Potent was used in seventeenth century alchemy as a sign for the crucible, the pot in which for instance, metals are melted, a melting pot.  The cross is the most ancient symbol of the crucible, which was called cruzel, crucible or croiset in French. In Latin, crucibulum, the root word crucible means crux, cruces, or cross. It is evident that all this is an invitation to reflection. It is in the crucible that the primal mater of the great work suffers with great patience the passion of the Christ. It is in the erotic crucible of sexuality, which the Ego dies and the phoenix is re-born out from its own ashes. INRI, "In Necis Renascor Integer". "In death be reborn intact and pure."
The Cross Potent has arms with extremities which end in "T" (taus). The cross-strokes at the ends of its extremities are often said to represent the vault of the heavens. Crosses are often associated with sky or sun gods. The Cross Potent was such a symbol in ancient Mesopotamia. This cross is also called the Windlass, a term linked with it in the Middle Ages, and representing the four positions of the sun and the four directions of the wind. 
The Cross Potent has a peculiar symmetry; its four T's expand into the cosmos. Symbolizing a point of encounter between the celestial and the terrestrial worlds. Therefore, a mid point between both "the center of the world". It is also symbol of the tool and work of the celestial blacksmith, the Demiurge, the universal soul and the work that forms destiny.
The four T's united at a point symbolize the soul, obtained from the influence of the matter, through work and self-sacrifice and elevated and separated from it, glorified and confirmed in it's celestial vision and finally re-centered in the matter, but now in perfect equilibrium; which speaks of the regeneration of a new life. It also symbolizes the universal dissolving agent, "primordial matter" of things, in which everything can be fused together again.
"All of nature, all productions and all the creatures are linked, and will be dissolved again in their own root, for the nature of matter dissolves in what belongs only to its nature. Those who have ears to hear, listen." - The Gospel According to Thomas
The Cross Potent is also associated with the cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified. Jesus Christ was actually crucified on a tau, which was composed of two wooden beams in the shape of a "T", and not on an actual cross. The Potent Cross can be seen as four taus, directed towards the four cardinal points or four directions of the winds (north, south, east and west) to symbolize the universality of the Christ.
Carlos Torres, Nationalist Party of Puerto Rico, 22 January 2003


Popular Democratic Party (The "Commonwealth" party)

1) image by António Martins, 21 September 1999

2) image by António Martins, 21 September 1999

Last night I saw on the news another attempt for a referendum on statehood or independence (or maintain status quo) will be held in Puerto Rico this year. In the news clip there was a flag-frenzy of US flags, Puerto Rican flags, and at some (to me) UFE's. There were so many flags, it was tough to distinguish, but I think that one of the UFE's is: Current Puerto Rican flag, but replace star with a cowboy hat (reliable viewing).
Rob Raeside, 5 March 1998

Red "jibaro" (country-dweller) on white (if someone has used the PR flag and replaced the star with a "cowboy hat" [the "pava" is a wide-brimmed woven straw hat which used to be commonly used by field workers] I haven't seen it, but I could believe that it has been done.) - Commonwealth party.
Anna Stone Jimanez, 31 October 1998

image from www.pava.net

The Partido Popular Democratico (popular democratic party) flag is on
this web site: www.pava.net . It is the" jibaro" (Puerto Rican field worker) face and the" pava "(straw hat) in red. -
j. lopez rodriguez , 6 December 1998

Is this the flag or just the party's symbol?! I don't expect to find this kind of shadow in a flag...
From the info provided, my educated guess is that the flag would be this symbol (without shadow) on a white field. I say that it is just a web graphic of the simbol.
Jorge Candeias, 9 December 1998

In the Israeli newspaper "Yediot Akhronot" of today there is a picture from PR showing people waving flags of PAVA. They are easy to recognize because of the logo that was posted here few days ago. (and it is a logo since now I saw the flag).
The flag is of 2:3 white bed sheet. in its center the logo (silhouette of a man with an hat) in red. (the colors are just the opposite to the colors of the logo which were white silhouette on red). around the lower half of the logo there is an inscription in half circle. that says "PAN-TIERRA-LIBERTAD " or something like that. In each of the corners of the bed sheet there is a small variant of the central logo, including the inscription, also in red.
Dov Gutterman , 15 December 1998

I asked one of my best friends, Nestor Rodriguez, for a translation and explanation of the pava.net page. No specific information on flags, but some interesting background which might help us in further research.
'OK, this looks like a web page for the "Partido Popular Democratico" (Popular Democratic Party), one of the two major political parties in PR. This one's for the ELA, or "Estado Libre Asociado" (Associated Free State), which is the current position that the island has in US politics. As you can see, the symbol for the party is a profile of a man wearing a straw hat, or "pava". Thus the name of the page.
Steve Kramer , 15 December 1998

The flag for the Popular Democratic Party is missing the party motto "Pan Tierra Libertad".  These words are written in a semicircle (I believe) in the lower half around the jibaro figure.
The one that looks like the Puerto Rican flag is an aberration of the official flag . It is not an official party flag because it would be prohibited by the law that adopted the official flag.
Luis E. Rodriguez , 2 April 2000


Rainbow Flags

The "rainbow" flag (see Puerto Rico - Rainbow Flag) does not necessarily represent the gay/lesbian community. The "rainbow" pattern is used by the Cooperative movement in PR and was used by an ephemeral reformist party some years ago.  The Cooperative (proposing ownership of business by cooperative owners-workers) used the colors before they were associated with the gay/lesbian community
Esteban Jimenez, 3 November 2000


Part III - Ultra-rightist movements