Podcast Summary: Todo Concostrina – "Acontece que no es poco | Puerto Rico no quiere ser Hawái (y 4)"
SER Podcast, March 12, 2026
Host: Nieves Concostrina

Overview

This episode wraps up a week-long series on Puerto Rico and cultural activism, focusing on the parallels between Puerto Rico and Hawaii. Host Nieves Concostrina uses her trademark humor and narrative style to examine how the fate of Hawaii serves as a warning for Puerto Rico, especially in the context of cultural erasure, gentrification, and U.S. intervention. The episode uses music, history, and irony to highlight the ongoing struggle for cultural and national identity in Puerto Rico, drawing a direct line to Hawaiian experiences.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Linking Pop Culture and Activism ([00:44]–[02:34])

• The episode starts by referencing Bad Bunny’s cultural activism and the importance of understanding historical contexts through recent Puerto Rican pop culture moments.

• Ricky Martin’s halftime Super Bowl performance is featured, specifically a song warning against letting Puerto Rico suffer the same fate as Hawaii, referencing displacement and gentrification.

  Ricky Martin lyric ([01:21]):
  "Quieren quitarme el río y también la playa / Quieren el barrio mío y que abuela se vaya... / que no quiero que hagan contigo lo que le pasó a Hawái."

• The symbolic use of plastic chairs in performances is discussed—representing the everyday life and resilience of Puerto Ricans ([02:34]).

2. The Hawaiian Precedent ([03:59]–[08:16])

• The segment pivots to Hawaii, explaining that, as in Puerto Rico, cultural protest songs laments the loss of sovereignty and identity.

• Israel Kamakawiwo’ole is mentioned not just for "Over the Rainbow," but as an activist highlighting the destruction of Hawaiian culture ([04:26]).

  Concostrina on discovery myths ([04:26]):
  “No vamos a decir que descubrió las Hawai, porque los hawaianos ya se conocían a sí mismos hacía mucho [...] Cook solo llegó allí y les puso nombre.”

• Nieves recounts how British and American missionaries and businessmen systematically imposed foreign customs, religion, and economic control, paralleling events in other colonized regions like India ([05:34]–[06:05]).

3. The Bayonet Constitution and Loss of Sovereignty ([07:13]–[11:32])

• A key anecdote involves Queen Liliʻuokalani’s sharp wit regarding her supposed ‘English blood’:

  Concostrina recounts ([07:15]):
  “La reina Liluk les aclaró que no, que el origen de su sangre inglesa estaba en que uno de sus antepasados se había comido a James Cook. Humor hawaiano.”

• History is shown repeating itself with foreign economic interests demanding political power and altering Hawaiian law through the infamous “Bayonet Constitution,” disenfranchising natives and favoring foreigners ([10:01]–[10:34]).

• U.S. military intervention is highlighted as inevitable ("a la fuerza"), ultimately leading to a coup, the end of the monarchy, and formal annexation in 1898—the same year the U.S. took Puerto Rico ([10:36]–[11:40]).

4. Parallels with Puerto Rico and Modern Gentrification ([11:40]–[13:39])

• As the U.S. annexed Hawaii, Hawaiian and Puerto Rican destinies became intertwined—often through labor migration and parallel processes of dispossession and cultural loss.

• Hawaii today is depicted as a “parque temático para extranjeros ricos”, with billionaires buying up land, skyrocketing costs of living, and native Hawaiians being forced to emigrate ([12:00]–[12:40]).

• The loss of land and identity is further reinforced by references to U.S. formal apologies that do little to restore what was lost:

  Concostrina ([12:40]):
  "En 1993, el Congreso de los Estados Unidos aprobó una declaración para pedir perdón formalmente al pueblo hawaiano. [...] Pero bueno, el destino trozo ya no lo arreglan."

5. Puerto Rico’s Stand: Cultural Resistance ([13:39]–[14:46])

• Bad Bunny’s art and activism are reframed as radical acts of resistance, using language, accent, and symbolism to assert Puerto Rican identity on the world’s stage ([13:39]).

• Concostrina praises these acts, highlighting that, unlike artists seeking more commercial U.S. success, Bad Bunny doubles down on his roots, even exaggerating his Puerto Rican accent in protest ([13:39]–[14:42]):

  Concostrina ([14:17]):
  "Si, los demás cantantes puertorriqueños han metido mucho inglés en sus canciones para triunfar en Estados Unidos. Bad Bunny prefiere hasta exagerar su acento. Puerto Rico, Nueva York, vete a la mierda."

• The host acknowledges not being a fan of Bad Bunny’s music per se, but strongly admires the activism behind it.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the meaning of plastic chairs ([02:34]):

  "Significan conversaciones de barrio, significan veranos al aire libre, puertorriqueños charlando al fresco en las puertas de las casas."

• On humor and colonial history ([07:15]):

  "El origen de su sangre inglesa estaba en que uno de sus antepasados se había comido a James Cook. Humor hawaiano."

• On manufactured consent and erasure ([12:00]):

  "Se manipuló la historia para difundir que los hawaianos estaban felices de pertenecer a los Estados Unidos. Era absolutamente mentira."

• On Bad Bunny’s activism ([14:17]):

  "Bad Bunny prefiere hasta exagerar su acento. Puerto Rico, Nueva York, vete a la mierda. Yo creo que es importante lo que está haciendo, con todos los matices, con todos los peros que le quieras poner."

Important Timestamps

• 00:44 — Introduction to the Puerto Rico-Hawaii connection, Bad Bunny & Ricky Martin as cultural activists.
• 01:21 — Ricky Martin’s performance, direct lyrics condemning gentrification.
• 02:34 — Explanation of the symbolic use of plastic chairs in Puerto Rican culture.
• 04:26 — Discussing Israel Kamakawiwo’ole’s activism and Hawaii's colonization.
• 07:15 — Queen Liliʻuokalani’s famous anecdote about her "English blood".
• 10:01 — The Bayonet Constitution and disenfranchisement of native Hawaiians.
• 11:40 — The parallel histories of Puerto Rico and Hawaii under U.S. imperial expansion in 1898.
• 12:00 — Modern gentrification in Hawaii, displacement of native Hawaiians.
• 13:39 — Cultural resistance in Puerto Rico, with a focus on Bad Bunny’s radicalism.

Tone & Final Thought

With her characteristic blend of sharp humor and historical storytelling, Nieves Concostrina renders a complex history both accessible and urgent. Through anecdotes, song lyrics, and cultural critique, the episode underlines the deep connection between popular culture, activism, and the continuing fight of colonized peoples against erasure and exploitation.

Concostrina’s parting thought:
"Tendrá sus críticos, pero desde su trinchera hace lo que debe hacer." ([14:46])

This episode is a passionate call to remember and resist, using both history and contemporary culture to challenge repeating colonial patterns.