During the mid-1940s , various pro-independence groups , such as the Puerto Rican Independence Party , which believed in gaining the island 's independence through the electoral process , and the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party , which believed in the concept of armed revolution , existed in Puerto Rico . On October 30 , 1950 , the nationalists , under the leadership of Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos staged uprisings in the towns of Ponce , Mayagüez , Naranjito , Arecibo , Utuado ( Utuado Uprising ) , San Juan ( San Juan Nationalist revolt ) and Jayuya
San Juan Nationalist revolt
San Juan Nationalist revolt
Military history of Puerto Rico