Inside the Perfecto Oyola Biblioteca Criolla and Cultural Center in Jersey City, a musical band of four old men wearing blue blazers and brown pants played guitars and maracas. A burly, bald man wearing a white hat, a sparkling gold vest and a tie imprinted with the Puerto Rican flag danced with a blond-haired woman wearing silver earrings and blue jeans. The crowd clapped, clapped and clapped. “Whepa!” yelled the old man. Meanwhile, trays of sweet bananas, hot pork and salad with green avocado released a flavorful aroma.
“The purpose of this event is to celebrate the discovery of Puerto Rico,” said Edwin Perez, the branch manager of the Perfecto Oyola Biblioteca Criolla and Cultural Center and chief organizer of the event. “Puerto Rico was founded on November 23 in 1492, and we celebrate this every year.”
The event, “The Discovery of Puerto Rico,” was held at the library at 280 First Street in late November. Members of the Perfecto Oyola Biblioteca Criolla and Cultural Center organized it, with help from the Organization of Community Awareness Series (OCAS), which also funded it. The purpose of the event is to remember the founding of Puerto Rico and to educate the community about the country’s heritage.
Perez, who used to live in Jersey City but now lives in Middlesex County, added that this event also has an educational purpose: keeping the Puerto Rican culture and history alive in the city.
He said the Biblioteca Criolla and Cultural Center is the only library in the Jersey City Free Public Library system solely dedicated to Latino information, culture and books. He said it was founded in 1972 by demand from the Latin community in the city.
OCAS, which is a nonprofit department of the Jersey City Free Public Library system, cosponsored the event with the library center. According to Perez, the estimated cost for the event’s production was about $700.
The OCAS was first started in 1977 in Jersey City. According to officials in the department, it “seeks to unite in common cause, young and old, people of all nationality and classes, through artistic, educational and cultural exchanges and cooperative service efforts.”
The department has worked with New Jersey City University, St. Peter’s College, Hudson County Council on Alcohol & Drug Abuse, Jersey City Historical Society, the Urban League, Black United Fund and the Hudson Repertory Dance Theater and School.
Kwame Agyeman, an organizer with the group and a resident of Jersey City, said OCAS cosponsored the library’s event because it wanted to help exhibit culture to a large group of people and to make a contribution to humanity. “This event brings forth fellowship and understanding that we’re all human beings,” he said. He added the event is one way the library gives back to community. Also, he said books are contributions to what people have made in society.
Many residents of Jersey City at “The Discovery of Puerto Rico” said they, too, felt that the event was making a significant contribution to the community.
“It’s like family here,” said Tony Contreras, a resident of Jersey City. He added that the event was important because it talks about the history of Puerto Rico, so it serves an educational purpose for the community.
Juanita Lopez and Margie Cortez, who are residents of Jersey City, said the event brings people from the community to the library, which contains works by Spanish authors and information. Additionally, they said the information at the library teaches others about the Puerto Rican culture and music.
Moreover, they said the event brings back memories of what it was like growing up in Puerto Rico.
Maria Alvarado, another resident of Jersey City but born in Puerto Rico, said, “The event brings the community together by keeping in touch with their country.”
She said it also helps future generations keep in touch with their history. And keeping in touch with their past enriches their present and strengthens continuity, she said.
Furthermore, she said the history the event celebrates gives members of the community a stronger sense of their identity.
Jordan M. Doronila is a journalism and media studies major at Rutgers-Newark.
