Aire, Tierra y Fuego: Environmental Trauma and Grassroots Mobilization in Puerto Rico

“It’s not easy. I cry at night. I cry in the bathroom [...] I have to be strong.” Those
are words uttered by Diana Fernandez. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, Hurricane María’s economic loss is estimated to be anywhere from US $43 to $159 billion. The cyclone leveled power grids, homes and other essential infrastructure in Puerto Rico. Scholarly work surrounding the impacts of hurricanes on the island have been widely documented. However, dedication to the storm’s effects on shaping social issues, identity, and political parties are seldom. This study applies text data of hurricane survivors and their testimonials, engages in empirical approaches to identity and leverages qualitative case studies of ecofeminism and the Movimiento Victoria Ciudadana to center gender disparities and grassroots mobilization in Puerto Rico. At its simplest, this study argues that environmental phenomena inform salient discourses of political status and social life on the island—because for many, like Diana Fernandez, life was, and still is, not easy.