Title: Puerto Ricans in World War II - Wikipedia
Headings: Puerto Ricans in World War II
Puerto Ricans in World War II
Contents
Lead-up to World War II
World War II
Homefront
Highly decorated combatants
United States Army Air Forces
Women in the military
Puerto Rican commanders
Discrimination
Human experimentation
Post World War II
Further reading
See also
Notes
References

Content: Llopis was sent to lead the fight against the Anarchists in Catalonia, but his troops were outnumbered. He was captured and was sentenced to die by firing squad. MG Luis R. Esteves
Among the many Puerto Ricans who fought on behalf of the Second Spanish Republic as members of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, was Lieutenant Carmelo Delgado Delgado (1913–1937), a leader of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party from Guayama who upon the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War was in Spain in pursuit of his law degree. Delgado was an anti-fascist who believed that the Spanish Nationalists were traitors. He fought in the Battle of Madrid, but was captured and was sentenced to die by firing squad on April 29, 1937; he was amongst the first US citizens to die in that conflict. In 1937, Japan invaded China and in September 1939, Germany invaded Poland. In October 1940, the 295th and 296th Infantry Regiments of the Puerto Rican National Guard, founded by Major General Luis R. Esteves, were called into Federal Active Service and assigned to the Puerto Rican Department in accordance with the existing War Plan Orange. During that period of time, Puerto Rico's economy was suffering from the consequences of the Great Depression, and unemployment was widespread. Unemployment was one of the reasons that some Puerto Ricans chose to join the Armed Forces.