Carlos Gallisá Bisbal is a Puerto Rican

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

 attorney

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

, politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

, and independence movement

Puerto Rican independence movement

The Puerto Rican independence movement refers to initiatives throughout the history of Puerto Rico aimed at obtaining independence for the Island, first from Spain, and then from the United States...

 leader.

After graduating from the University of Puerto Rico

University of Puerto Rico

The University of Puerto Rico is the state university system of Puerto Rico. The system consists of 11 campuses and has approximately 64,511 students and 5,300 faculty members...

, Gallisá practiced labor law

Labour and employment law

Labour law is the body of laws, administrative rulings, and precedents which address the legal rights of, and restrictions on, working people and their organizations. As such, it mediates many aspects of the relationship between trade unions, employers and employees...

. He became politicized through the Vieques

Vieques, Puerto Rico

Vieques , in full Isla de Vieques, is an island–municipality of Puerto Rico in the northeastern Caribbean, part of an island grouping sometimes known as the Spanish Virgin Islands...

 protests against the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

.

He was elected to the House of Representatives

House of Representatives of Puerto Rico

The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the territorial legislature of Puerto Rico...

 as a member of the Puerto Rican Independence Party

Puerto Rican Independence Party

The Puerto Rican Independence Party is a Puerto Rican political party that campaigns for the independence of Puerto Rico from United States suzerainty....

 (PIP) in 1972. In 1973 he left the PIP to join the more radical Puerto Rican Socialist Party

Puerto Rican Socialist Party

The Puerto Rican Socialist Party was a Marxist and pro-independence political party in Puerto Rico seeking the end of United States of America control on the Hispanic and Caribbean island...

 (PSP). In 1983, Gallisá became general secretary

General secretary

-International intergovernmental organizations:-International nongovernmental organizations:-Sports governing bodies:...

 of the PSP.

Gallisá has suffered harassment due to his politics, including a firebombing

Firebombing

Firebombing is a bombing technique designed to damage a target, generally an urban area, through the use of fire, caused by incendiary devices, rather than from the blast effect of large bombs....

 of his law office. He has testified at the United Nations

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

 on the decolonization issue.

Following the disbanding of the PSP in 1993, Gallisá became a leader of the New Puerto Rican Independence Movement

New Puerto Rican Independence Movement

The New Puerto Rican Independence Movement was a left-wing pro-independence organization in Puerto Rico. Founded in 1993 by former members of the Puerto Rican Socialist Party, one of its primary leaders was Carlos Gallisá. In 2004, the NMIP merged with the National Hostosian Congress to form the...

 and later the Hostosian National Independence Movement

Hostosian National Independence Movement

The Hostosian National Independence Movement is a leftist and pro-independence organization in Puerto Rico.-Formation:The MINH was formed on May 6, 2004, by a merger of the National Hostosian Congress and the New Puerto Rican Independence Movement . The two groups that formed the MINH were...

. He is also a columnist for the newspaper Claridad

Claridad

Claridad is a Spanish-language weekly newspaper based in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It was first published in June, 1959. Claridad served as the official publication of the Pro-Independence Movement and later the Puerto Rican Socialist Party. The paper has been praised for its strong political and...

("Clarity") and a regular news commentator on "Fuego Cruzado" ("Crossfire"), a radio program aired by WSKN-AM in San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...

.

External links

• Gallisá profile from Voices for Independence online book