In late October and November, 1950, the Partido Nationalista de Puerto Rico, (Puerto Rican Nationalist Party) led uprisings and rebellions all over the island. The US national guard and insular police’s response was brutal. Many nationalists were killed and thousands were imprisoned on false and nonexistent charges. Innocent suspected nationalists, members of a revolutionary family and socialists were also jailed. Nationalists were killed at police stations and assassinated. Due process and Constitutional rights did not apply because all these atrocities were occurring in Puerto Rico.

The Utuado Uprising became the Utuado massacre. Thirty two Nationalists were massacred by 1,000 national guard troops. The plan had been to hold out in Utuado and get the United Nation’s attention. Due to it’s size and strategic location in the middle of the island, in the mountains, it was a good place to battle the superior army without mass casualties.

In the early morning of October 30, 1950, thirty-two nationalists split into two groups. One set the federal post office on fire, the other planned to attack the police station. However due to a coerced leader, Faustino Diaz Pacheco, snipers were ready. After several were shot, the nationalists went to the house of the president of the Utuado chapter of the PNPR, Damian Torres, to continue to wage their battle from there.

By 8pm 1,000 national guard had arrived. Most of them surrounded Torres’ house. Another unit was sent to set up a high caliber machine gun 120 yards away. They fired 600 rounds at the small wooden house for 5 minutes straight. At 11:30, it was repeated. The 2nd floor crashed into the 1st floor and staircases collapsed on them. Their leader, Heriberto Castro had been killed, as had 23 others. The 9 surviving ones, then were given orders to come out within five minutes and they would not be harmed or they would grenade the house. They left the house. Immediately they were slammed on the ground and searched.

They neared the police station, however were not taken inside, instead down an alleyway. A MI9I9A4 Browning machine gun had been set up, a police officer then said “you won’t be killing policemen any more”, then opened fire, killing several instantly. One young nationalist Julio Feliciano Colon, died writing “asesinos”, murderers, in his own blood. They fired constantly for several minutes. When firing ceased no one called for medical attention and those who tried were threatened. The police laughed as they slowly, painfully died. When a doctor came at 5:00 am, 4 hrs later they all were dead. They were then left in the street for 5hrs, until 10 am. Dogs roamed over them and people were not allowed to call the families until the national guard consented.

Then the national guard throughly bombed the town with P47 Thunderbolt war planes. The town was throughly destroyed.

The uprising, turned into a full blown massacre of nationalists. While they did not receive what they died fighting for, they did receive attention, this was too big for the US media to ignore. The UN also weighed in.

I affirm that the revolutionary spirit and fearlessness of the Nationalists, lives on, so that one day our beloved island is free.

Que Viva Puerto Rico Libre

No Copyright Infringement intended.

See War Against All Puerto Rican’s, Nelson Denis.