"Las Playas Son Del Pueblo" is a saying and a social movement in Puerto Rico that fights against the illegal privatization of its coasts and defends public access to its beaches. It translates to "The Beaches Belong to the People". The red letters are sewed in with white and light blue thread symbolizing the colors of the original Puerto Rican flag. Originally, the flag used a light blue that represents the sky and the islands coastal waters. In 1952, it was changed to dark blue to align with the colors of the United States flag as an effort to diminish the flag's revolutionary symbolism. For nearly 50 years, the display of the Puerto Rican flag was illegal under U.S. rule, suppressing national identity. 

Discrimination against Puerto Ricans for being "too loud" is a manifestation of prejudice. Perceptions of Puerto Ricans as excessively loud, aggressive, or uncultured are often used to justify discrimination and reinforce negative stereotypes. Lively, loud gatherings filled with music and vibrant conversation are a normal and accepted part of many Puerto Rican family and community dynamics. I embroidered a boombox and its accompanying music notes to symbolize this part of our culture as it's even used in our protests against the privatization of beaches through beach parties meant to gather the local community to show that we still belong in our beaches. For many Puerto Ricans, expressiveness is not just a personality trait but a reflection of our vibrant culture. The passionate spirit and high-energy communication style comes from a history of adversity and suppression. 

I transferred an image of a million dollar mansion from Puerto Rico that looms over the beach. It's placed at the top of the beach on my quilt to represent how these million dollar construction projects that build mansions and condominiums displace the local Puerto Rican population from our beaches by taking up the space with its construction and even erecting barriers and fences to separate the beaches into two; the local, accessible side and the tourist side that is only accessible by paying. This is illegal as by law all beaches in their entirety in Puerto Rico must remain accessible to the public.