Celebrating Women’s History Month: Honoring Mariana Bracetti

The name Mariana Bracetti may not be as well known to the general public as it is to the residents of Bracetti Plaza, a public housing development in Manhattan where NYCHA’s Office of Safety and Security recently hosted a community pop-up event to provide resource information and answer questions.

However, her contributions to Puerto Rican culture and the role she played in the Puerto Rican struggle for independence in the 1860s are legendary. In honor of Women’s History Month, we remember Mariana Bracetti, whose nickname was Brazo de Oro (“Golden Arm”) due to her activism and for having knitted the first Puerto Rican flag.

Born in 1825, Mariana grew to become a strong proponent of Dr. Ramon Emeterio Betances (for which another NYCHA development, in the Bronx, is named) and his advocacy of Puerto Rican independence.

As president of the “Lares Revolutionary Council,” Ms. Bracetti put her design and knitting skills to work when Dr. Betances suggested that she knit the flag of the future independent Puerto Rico (modeled on the Dominican Republic’s flag) to unite the Puerto Rican people and to create a symbol of hope for the future. The original flag is now exhibited in the University of Puerto Rico Museum.

We honor Ms. Bracetti for her strength, leadership, and willingness to devote herself entirely to the cause in which she so strongly believed.

Photo caption: The flag of Puerto Rico designed by Mariana Bracetti.