65th Infantry in Korea

All Puerto Rican "Borinqueneers"

Borinqueneers

Commentary By Hector Varela

The bravery, spirit, and combat skills of the Puerto Rican fighting man will be depicted on the PBS made for television documentary movie "The Borinqueneers".  You can read about them in Hector Varela's Novel, "Affinity for Trouble: A Puerto Rican Story".  It has been 57 years since Puerto Rico's elite Borinqueneers, the segregated 65th Infantry Regiment first fought in Korea.  Be sure to catch "The Borinqueneers" narrated by Hector Elizando on your local PBS television station.  It is to premiere August 2007 and every single boricua should see it. They honored all of us who call ourselves "boricuas".  Visit their website at www.borinqueneers.com

FRom the Book "Affinity for Trouble-A Puerto Rican Story" by Hector Varela.

Around noon time everyone had edged back towards the ramparts not wanting to miss seeing the troop ship and drinking it in with their eyes for every minute that they possibly could. Around 3 or 4 o'clock in the afternoon several soldiers came and told all of the people on the ramparts that the USNS Marine Lynx would sail under cover of darkness and that the soldiers would not be able to glimpse El Morro or the relatives from the ship. You could see the disappointment and sadness in the faces of everyone around. A lot of tears began to roll down the cheeks of the boricua relatives who had hoped for a glimpse of their beloved to put in their heart and take home to the casa, casucha, choza or bohío and remember Juan, Antonio, Francisco, Manuel, Guelo, Miguel and Pancho.

In this island all the Borinqueneers were dearly beloved and so the people stayed, just as we stayed, to sense the passing of 2,000 boricua souls from the shores of their Borinquen! Not withstanding the sad news and the encouragement by the soldiers for the people to go home, not one single person left the ramparts of El Morro!