Puerto Ricans first began migrating in significant numbers to the mainland United States in the mid-1800s, when the island was still a Spanish colony. In 1898, Puerto Rico became a territory of the United States following the Spanish-American War, and in 1917, the US Congress approved the Jones-Shafroth Act, which granted Puerto Ricans statutory US citizenship. No longer needing a passport to enter the contiguous United States, Puerto Ricans began to migrate in greater numbers, especially after the advent of air travel in the 1950s. The vast majority of migrants settled in New York, where the Puerto Rican population grew from under 70,000 in 1940 to more than 800,000 in 1970 (Shekitka, John. “On Arrival: Puerto Ricans in Post World War II New York.” Center on History & Education: Teachers College, Columbia University, 16 Aug. 2016). Mostly concentrated in several enclaves across the city, including Spanish Harlem, the South Bronx, and Loisaida in the East Village, these Puerto Ricans were often referred to as Nuyoricans by their island-dwelling counterparts, a slur used to identify Puerto Ricans who had assimilated into US culture. 

Piri Thomas wasn’t part of the Great Migration of the 1950s and 60s. Rather, he was born in what would come to be known as Spanish Harlem in 1928 to a Puerto Rican mother and a Cuban father. Growing up, he faced poverty and racial discrimination due to his Afro-Caribbean heritage and became involved in crime and gang activity. Thomas struggled with addiction and was incarcerated for armed robbery as a young man. He served seven years in prison, and upon his release, dedicated himself to helping at-risk youth avoid the same fate. 

In 1967, Thomas published the bestselling autobiography Down These Mean Streets, an exploration of identity, racism, and life in New York City barrios. Down These Mean Streets was one of the first works to herald the arrival of the Nuyorican movement, a cultural and artistic movement born out of New York City’s Puerto Rican communities in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The Nuyorican movement sought to reclaim the term that was often used as a derogatory slur both within and outside of Puerto Rican communities by celebrating the art and culture of Puerto Ricans living in New York City. Founded by poet Miguel Algarin, the Nuyorican Poets Café on the Lower East Side became an important cultural center and gathering place for playwrights like Miguel Piñero, poets like Pedro Pietri, and authors like Piri Thomas to create, commune, and share work, forging a movement that inspired cultural pride in generations of Nuyoricans.