OH, MY PERLA DEL
CARIBE! DEPT.
(Puerto Rico's Orphan)
by Don jibaro Orlando
When I was a young man living in San Juan in the 1960s, if
you wanted something illegal, immoral or indecent you went
to la Perla to get it. So we got it... because we knew the
password. Password? Yes, you need that to get outta there
alive. What? Am I being dramatic? Read on....
La Perla de San Juan Puerto Rico is a slum neighborhood...
y'know, low cost housing with squatter roots. Folks kinda
"invade" an abandoned piece of land that apparently belongs
to no one (but the government, of course). They build their
little house and nobody says anything. Some say La Perla was
made infamous by the "arguable racist" anthropological study
La Vida by Oscar Lewis.
La Perla had one way street to go in and the same one to
come out. In other words, if you go out, means you were
allowed to go out. Other kids were never allowed to go
inside la Perla, curiously located in an incredible prime
real estate section, in north old San Juan overlooking the
sea. Me? I went in like a dog going though his own house.
Tourists in all guides are advised not to go in la Perla
because you might get mugged, beat or killed or all
three... even during daylight hours. But I think that La
Perla has been given a dangerous reputation of being a
"Sal Si Puedes" (Get out if you can) Hell Hole.
True, La Perla is tough... but that demeanor is more adopted
by outsiders who generally go by the urban legend rather
than research and facts. Nowadays, there are tougher hoods.
Evil has spread, compadre!
The people from La Perla that I've
spoken to in the past have a neighborhood community pride
that strives to shine as any other barrio or community in
the Island. Don José "Pepo" Velez says —"We have town
meetings, we pick up our trash and pay our taxes just like
everybody else, yet they judge us by some dark mythical
past."
Most of the streets in La Perla are clean. You can see
satellite dishes on some rooftops not all doors have iron
bars on them. Some residents complain that la Perla has been
abandoned by the municipal government responsible for
dishing out community services. The theory is that if you
allow it to become a 100% dump, la Perla residents will
leave, leaving it open for urban development that will turn
the few acres into a 7th wonder of tourism. There's hearsay
that Donald Trump has his eye on it to invest millions and
make San Juan the real Pearl of the Caribbean that it's
supposed to be.
The government itself has tried to lure residents off la
Perla, offering to send them to "official Puerto Rican
housing projects", ergo, caserios. But residents give it the
"evil eye" as of falling from "Guatemala to Guatapeor" (Outta
frying pan into the fire.)
The mayor's office in SJ has used numerous devices to ease
of some of the residents out but the folks say" "Nacarile...
we ain't stupid." They're on to it. Some say that the offers
of relocation and displacement are so unfairly low that it
insulting to the home owners, some whom have been demanded
to show the Title Deeds.
The residents lament that they are
tired of promises from the "Municipio" of money to establish
community programs and basic transportation and utilities
improvements, and then no dice. Consequently, a desire has
emerged from the new generation to convey an image of
invulnerability and power.
That could be the "Achilles Heel" or a "two edged sword"
that will prevent the fine citizens of La Perla to rise
above the circumstances and an get urban, but it looks like
they're coming right along... just like if it was Beverly
Hills.
donjibaro@gmail.com
This is the bottom line
“Live in such a way that no one blames the rest of us nor
finds fault with our work.” —(2 Corinthians 6:3)
 
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