On September 29, 2017, I proudly attended an emergency rally to bring awareness to the deplorable conditions those in Puerto Rico are enduring following Hurricane Maria. It was a cool Friday evening filled with nothing but love, solidarity, and unity. Puerto Ricans are some of the toughest and strongest people that I know, but that night I saw those same people show emotion so raw and candid that it didn’t seem like those same people. For a couple of hours, the crowd convened on Wacker and Wabash Streets in downtown Chicago in front of the Trump Tower, airing their grievances and personal stories into a small megaphone to a group of over 300 Puerto Rican and non-Puerto Rican Chicagoans alike.

I heard stories too sad and gruesome to even believe.

One was almost inaudible as she was well past the verge of tears. She told of her family that she hasn’t heard from her family in Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria decimated the island, and from those that she did she said that food and water are scarcer than ever. Sanitation and plumbing are so deplorable that some even resort to defecating in plastic bags and throwing them in already-full dumpsters.

There were speakers even as young as one 7-year-old boy, who skipped three days of school (jokingly with the approval of his mother) just to help pack boxes with essential supplies helping those out in Puerto Rico, immediately calling out Donald Trump and his administration for their paltry help in addressing the crisis in the U.S. territory.

Now, I have attended politically charged protests with “The Resistance” before, but none of them were ever as genuinely emotional as the one I attended on that beautiful September evening. As someone who never really cries at emotional stories, I will admit that some of those stories did make me a bit teary-eyed, and it was really hard to resist that. The people who spoke at this demonstration were genuinely hurting because their homeland was hurting as well.

Puerto Rico deserves the same amount of attention and aid that those in Houston and Florida had received during their devastating hurricanes.

Puerto Ricans are Americans, but the fact that they don’t happen to be a state shouldn’t be a reason that they aren’t receiving aid as plentiful as those on the homeland. This means taking action by repealing legislation such as the Jones Act, which is a World War I-era law that requires all U.S. goods need be carried by U.S. ships manned by Americans, which means aid intended to go to Puerto Rico must stop by ports as far away as New York. This law in itself is ridiculous, for this law logistically and logically doesn’t make sense. Why should aid, say from Miami or even from foreign cities like Mexico City, go all the way to New York, and then back down to San Juan? It isn’t just a waste of money but it’s also a waste of time and lives on the line. Donald Trump waived the Jones Act for 10 days, which is an even larger spit in the face because in the long run, 10 days won’t even cover two trips.

Puerto Rico is literally powerless, helpless, and a downright hell on earth.

If Donald Trump and his administration are just going to sit around and criticize Puerto Rico for putting the country in debt, then it’s up to us as Americans to help out other Americans, just like we did when Hurricanes Harvey and Irma hit the southeast. There are several ways you can help.

Monetary donations can be made via the Hispanic Federation, Americares, and Puerto Rico Rises.

For those of you who happen to be reading this outside Illinois, I’m currently based in Chicago. With that being said there is a well-known Puerto Rican group in Chicago where you can drop off supplies for Maria victims:

La Casa Puertorriqueña

1237 N. California Ave.

Chicago, IL 60622

(773) 342-8023

As I have said before, Puerto Rico is currently a disaster zone. Puerto Rico nos necesita, now more than ever. Take the time to help, for lives and the way of life are at stake for over 3 million Americans.