Participants hold signs with the Puerto Rico's flag painted in black and white as symbol of resistance and civil disobedience during the NYC's 60th annual Puerto Rico Day parade on June 11, 2017 ...

Puerto Rican political identity is woven into the fibers of the territory’s flag—or flags. “It’s not only a symbol of national affirma­tion,” says historian Jorell Meléndez-Badillo.