One person's voice is powerful, but 40k voices brought together toward one purpose can move mountains. After seeing the amount of support this petition has received, my first update touting 100+ signatures seems like small potatoes. But, each and every one of you has contributed to the exponential growth of this petition - and did so out of love and concern for Puerto Rico. Thank you for continuing to share the petition, and getting it into the hands of influencers like Lilia Luciano, who shared the petition on Twitter. Ms. Luciano, thank you for using your platform to promote this petition! I started this petition because I am a Puerto Rican woman living on the Mainland in Florida, and I know what it’s like to leave my home wondering if I would ever see it again as a Category 5 approaches. What happened in Puerto Rico is the worst case scenario. It’s the thing you pray to avoid when the warm waters off the coast of Africa swirl into 160mph winds and threaten to sweep away every shred of security you can ever hope to have. So far, I have been lucky to return home. Thousands of Americans in Puerto Rico will not be able to go home again. There is so much more that needs to be done to clear the way for Puerto Rico to rebuild and repair power facilities, bridges and dams. How can an island go without power for 6 months? Those feelings of dissatisfaction and desire to help my community are what motivated me to begin this petition, and from reading your comments its clear those concerns motivated you to join this cause too. Colonialism has emptied Puerto Rico's coffers. We are American citizens, and yet Puerto Ricans on the island are economically exploited and offered limited rights. While the waiver this petition asks for is temporary, the hope is that this 12-month suspension of enforcement would give Puerto Rico the time it needs to get on its feet and rise from the rubble, dust itself off, and come to the table for lasting change. As we know, lasting change can only occur through Congress. Because Congress cannot agree on what day it is, that level of change comes too slowly to meet Puerto Rico's immediate needs. Instead, we are asking the DHS and POTUS to use their executive authority to suspend enforcement of the Jones Act on all cargo entering Puerto Rico. Doing so would remove barriers to the island's ability to acquire building materials and resources more quickly and at a lower cost. Given the extreme need for quick action, this is the best way to ensure Puerto Rican's can get to work and begin the healing process after this terrible disaster. Thank you for joining your voices together in support of Puerto Rico! The next goal is 100k signatures! Puerto Rico se levanta! Love and blessings, Jessica