Film: Community and Resistance in Puerto Rico

An  afternoon of film and conversation underlines San Francisco Bay Area connections and knowledge of community and resistance in Puerto Rico.  A showcase of two short documentary films focuses on the awareness of the water crisis, poverty, austerity in post-Maria Puerto Rico and the self-help and creative solutions that the community require. 

The first short, Todavía Estamos Aquí illustrates the hopeful residents of Barrio Rucio in mountainous Puerto Rico, supported by a mutual aid organization of university students and community organizers, responding to government inaction by providing educational support through Afro-traditional music, agroecology, physical activity, acompañamiento and tutoring.

The second film, We Still Here locally produced by Fistup Films follows the youth of Comerío, Puerto Rico as they become community organizers, restore housing, power, and clean-up efforts and then travel to Washington D.C. to demand action in Congress. It is a coming-of-age story about finding power and creating a sustainable future. 

A post screening conversation provides historical and cultural context of the island’s colonial legacy and the Puertoriqueno will to survive through leadership, self-management, and collective care. The audience will leave with a heightened understanding of colonial and environmental practices that will continue to be replicated in our own communities on the mainland.

Presented with support from: 

University of San Francisco School of Education, International and Multicultural Education 

San Francisco Public Library Latinx Center

University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez