Civics Collection
You Decide: Statehood for D.C. & Puerto Rico?

Introduction

People who live in the District of Columbia (D.C.) and U.S. territories, like Puerto Rico, are U.S. citizens, yet they do not enjoy all of the rights that citizens living in the fifty states do. In this interactive lesson, you will learn what rights residents of D.C. and Puerto Rico have—and do not have—as well as arguments for and against granting statehood to D.C. and Puerto Rico. At the end of the lesson, you will write a thesis statement that answers the essential question.
A map of the southeast United States and Caribbean islands.

Map of the United States with arrows locating the District of Columbia (top right) and Puerto Rico (bottom right).

An arrow points to a red dot indicating that the District of Columbia is located slightly inland but close to the Atlantic Ocean. The Potomac River and Virginia are to its west, and Maryland surrounds it along the northern, eastern, and southern boundaries. The District of Columbia flag is shown. It has a white background with three red stars centered over two red horizontal stripes. Puerto Rico appears in the Caribbean Sea in a southeasterly direction from the District of Columbia. The island has a small rectangular shape. The Puerto Rican flag is shown. It has a blue triangle with a white star on the left followed by three red and two white horizontal stripes.

Essential Question

Should the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico be granted statehood?

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