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We are propa
Puerto Rican Organization for the Performing Arts

The Puerto Rican Organization for the Performing Arts (PROPA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving, cultivating, and advocating for Afro-Indigenous Puerto Rican cultural traditions in Borikén (Puerto Rico) and throughout the diaspora.

PROPA is not solely a performing arts organization. We are a cultural preservation, advocacy, and social justice organization committed to safeguarding endangered histories, strengthening descendant leadership, and ensuring Afro-Indigenous Puerto Rican traditions remain living, practiced, and accessible for generations to come.

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what we
do for our communities
Signature Programs
& Initiatives

PROPA designs and leads programs that function as long-term preservation strategies rather than isolated events. PROPA operates at the intersection of historical preservation, artistic expression, and cultural activism, offering dynamic programs that ensure Puerto Rican traditions remain vibrant and accessible.

Since 2003, our impact includes strengthening cultural networks, recovering endangered histories, marking and protecting historical sites, supporting descendants and elders, and mentoring emerging archivists committed to community-led preservation.

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OUR ETHOS:
WHAT DRIVES PROPA?
At PROPA, our work is not just about cultural preservation—it’s about justice, representation, and community empowerment. PROPA operates at the intersection of historical preservation, artistic expression, and cultural activism, offering dynamic programs that ensure Puerto Rican traditions remain vibrant and accessible. 

A Cultural Justice Movement: We are more than an arts organization fighting for visibility, equity, and respect for Puerto Rican traditions.

Led by Practitioners & Historians: Unlike other organizations, PROPA is led by those directly involved in the artistic and historical traditions we preserve, ensuring authenticity and community-led efforts.

Committed to Education & Action: We believe that cultural preservation must go beyond performance—it must include advocacy, public education, and policy engagement.

A Bridge Between Generations & Diasporas: PROPA connects Puerto Ricans across the island and the diaspora, ensuring that heritage is not lost but strengthened and shared.

Driven by Resistance & Ancestral Pride: Our work honors the resilience of our African and Indigenous ancestors, who used Art, music, and storytelling as tools of survival, rebellion, and self-determination.

We are not just preserving culture: We are actively shaping the future of Puerto Rican identity, not observing from afar.

SEE OUR PROGRAMS
P
PROPA’s mission is to preserve, cultivate, and advocate for the rich afro-indigenous cultural traditions of the people of Borikén (Borinquen) worldwide. Through a commitment to preservation, we honor the heritage and legacy of Puerto Rican communities, ensuring that their traditions thrive for generations to come.

01. WE PRESERVE

community through vibrant events and programming celebrating
the Puerto Rican Diaspora, fostering connections and solidarity
across borders. Creating cultural exchange and celebration spaces
strengthens bonds and amplifies voices within our diverse community.

02. WE CULTIVATE

and embrace the diverse facets of Puerto Rican heritage,
art, and history. We are committed to safeguarding our cultural
legacy through innovative initiatives that honor our past,
celebrate our present, and shape our future.

03. WE ADVOCATE

and stand in solidarity with global artists, scholars, and activists,
providing platforms and programming that celebrate, and amplify
the richness and diversity of Puerto Rican art and culture.
Advocacy serves as a driving force for positive change.

01

Preserve.

PROPA preserves Afro-Indigenous Puerto Rican cultural traditions through research, documentation, and place-based preservation.

APRENDE MAS
02

Cultivate.

PROPA cultivates community through education, convening, and cultural exchange.

APRENDE MAS
03

ADVOCATE.

PROPA advocates for recognition, protection, and equity for Puerto Rican cultural arts as a matter of cultural justice.

APRENDE MAS
puerto rican organization for the performing arts
in depth
Founded in 2003, PROPA was created in response to a critical gap: the absence of sustained, community-led structures to document, protect, and advance cultural traditions rooted in African and Indigenous lineages. While these traditions have long sustained Puerto Rican communities, they have also been marginalized, extracted, or erased within dominant historical, academic, and cultural institutions.
PROPA exists to address that imbalance. We operate as a convener, steward, and cultural archive—bringing together artists, scholars, descendants, elders, and practitioners to ensure that knowledge is preserved with integrity and returned to the communities from which it comes.
Our work is grounded in the understanding that culture is not symbolic or static. It lives in bodies, land, language, ceremony, and daily practice. Preserving it requires long-term relationships, ethical research practices, and accountability to the people whose histories are being protected.
PROPA is not solely a performing arts organization. We are a cultural preservation, advocacy, and social justice organization committed to safeguarding endangered histories, strengthening descendant leadership, and ensuring Afro-Indigenous Puerto Rican traditions remain living, practiced, and accessible for generations to come.
APRENDE MAS
our founder & national president
melanie maldonado
Melanie Maldonado is a cultural advocate, historian, educator, and artist with a deep commitment to preserving, uplifting, and advancing Afro-Indigenous Puerto Rican traditions. As the National President/CEO of PROPA (The Puerto Rican Organization for the Performing Arts), she has been instrumental in shaping the organization into a leading force for cultural activism, education, and community engagement.
MEET OUR FOUNDER
OUR PROPA VISION:
We envision a world where Afro-Indigenous Puerto Rican culture
is fully recognized, preserved, and celebrated as a vital force of history, identity, and resistance.
BUILD A BETTER TOMORROW
Cultural preservation requires shared responsibility and long-term investment.
Support for PROPA enables place-based preservation, protection of vulnerable archives and oral histories, support for elders and practitioners, expanded public education, and the development of sustainable preservation infrastructure.
By supporting PROPA, you invest in cultural stewardship and the continued vitality of Afro-Indigenous Puerto Rican traditions.
DONATE TODAY
BECOME A SPONSOR
VOLUNTEER
Your support is not transactional.
It is an investment in cultural stewardship.
BUILD
Build long-term infrastructure for community-led preservation.
EXPAND
Expand free and accessible public cultural education
HONOR
Support elders, artists, and descendants whose labor sustains cultural continuity.
PROTECT
Protect endangered cultural sites through research, placards, and ceremony.
PRESERVE
Preserve vulnerable archives and oral histories.
GET INVOLVED
reach out

4700 Millenia Boulevard
Suite 175
Orlando, Florida 32839

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Phone: 407-583-6233

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