By Isabella Deza, Alliance Intern from George Mason University
Bad Bunny’s hit song and newest music video is a great way to start Hispanic Heritage month. The music video turns into a documentary as he presents an inspiring call to action regarding the blackouts and modern-day colonization that is happening in Puerto Rico, including economic and social injustices as well as the fight to keep the beaches public.
He named his song El Apagón (The Blackout) because Puerto Rico continues to suffer from power outages and Bad Bunny isn’t afraid to name who is liable: Luma Energy, a private Canadian-American company that is responsible for the power distribution on the island.
The power grid company and Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) have a 15-year contract made in 2020. They promised the island they would have better service but the power outages and prices have increased ever since.
So, Puerto Ricans have been protesting this company and the government for weeks now, making a slogan of “Luma out” as they demand the cancellation of the contract. The power outages have been impacting people all over the island, especially their health. Since hospitals are going hours without electricity and people aren’t able to connect their medical devices at home. It’s also been causing appliances to break, such as fridges, televisions, microwaves, printers, and fans.
And now Hurricane Fiona made landfall in Puerto Rico. The Category 1 hurricane dumped more than 2 feet of rainfall. This has caused the island to lose electricity as it knocked out the power grid. The extent of the damage is still unclear. So far, more than 1,000 residents have been rescued and at least 4 people died.