1. US Imperialism Project Natalia Azarian, Lisa Suarez, Samantha Lyons, Sean Philips

2. Why did the US want an empire? They wanted to gain:  Military power  Economic power  Political power

3. What occurred in Puerto Rico? - The US gave Puerto Rico a democratic governement. - The signing of the Jones Act (March 12th, 1917). - The Constitution of Puerto Rico and common wealth status on July 25th, 1952.

4. Why did the US intervene/purchase Puerto Rico? - Puerto Rico was rich in resources and convenient in location. - Thought it would be a big advantage to have Puerto Rico, so the US fought even harder against Spain to win it. - The US gained Puerto Rico from the Spanish-American War.

5. How did the US treat the local population? - The US gave Puerto Rico independence. - Also gave Puerto Rico economic changes, and beneficial political and social power to their island. - Puerto Rican citizens can fight in America's wars but cannot vote for America's president. - Though their government is set up almost identically to United States.

6. Did the US do the right thing? What ethical questions did imperialism raise? What other options might have been available? The US put schools in Puerto Rico, gave them a better government and freed them from Spain. Overall, the US really did do the right thing. - Curiosity; how would Puerto Rico pay for everything and how would they be able to maintain everything that the US did? - The US handled the situation as best as they could. I don't think they could've done anything different. They really helped Puerto Rico as politely as they could.