08 December 2016

The Rio Piedras Massacre 1935



War Against All Puerto Ricans by Nelson Denis, 2015, Excerpts

On October 24, 1935, University of Puerto Rico students held a meeting to discuss their relationship with Pedro Albizu Campos and the Nationalist Party. To insure a “peaceful” gathering, General Winship’s police surrounded the campus in Rio Piedras and stationed themselves on every street corner with carbines, tear gas, and machine guns.

At 10:30 AM, before the meeting started, several police cars intercepted a sedan with four Nationalists inside. Several more police cars pulled up, a squad of officers surrounded the car, and all of them started shooting.

The entire island was outraged. Speaking to 8,000 mourners, Albizu Campos accused General Winship and his police chief, Colonel Riggs, of deliberate murder. 




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