The 1954 United States Capitol shooting was an attack on March 1, 1954, by four Puerto Rican nationalists who sought to promote the cause of Puerto Rico's independence from US rule. They fired 30 rounds from semi-automatic pistols onto the legislative floor from the Ladies' Gallery (a balcony for visitors) of the House of Representatives chamber within the United States Capitol.

The nationalists, identified as Lolita Lebrn, Rafael Cancel Miranda, Andres Figueroa Cordero, and Irvin Flores Rodrguez, unfurled a Puerto Rican flag and began shooting at Representatives in the 83rd Congress, who were debating an immigration bill. Five Representatives were wounded, one seriously, but all recovered. The assailants were arrested, tried and convicted in federal court, and given long sentences, amounting to life imprisonment. In 1978 and 1979, their sentences were commuted by President Jimmy Carter. All four returned to Puerto Rico.

The independence movement in Puerto Rico refers to initiatives by inhabitants throughout the history of Puerto Rico to obtain full political independence for the island, first from the Spanish Empire, from 1493 to 1898 and, since 1898, from the United States. A variety of groups, movements, political parties, and organizations have struggled for Puerto Rico's independence over the centuries.

A spectrum of pro-autonomy, pro-nationalism, and pro-independence sentiments and political parties exist on the island. Since the beginning of the 19th century, organizations advocating independence in Puerto Rico have attempted both peaceful political means as well as violent revolutionary actions to achieve its objectives.

Since the second half of the 20th century, the independence movement has not been widely supported by the Puerto Rican public, failing to gain traction in both plebiscites and elections. In a status referendum in 2012, 5.5% voted for independence while Statehood obtained 61.1% of the votes cast. Independence also received the least support, less than 4.5% of the vote, in the status referendums in 1967, 1993 and 1998.

A fourth referendum was held in 2012, with 54% voting to change Puerto Rico's status but the federal government took no action to do so. The fifth plebiscite was held on June 11, 2017. With a voter turnout of 23%, it had the lowest turnout of any status referendum held in Puerto Rico. The independence option only received 1.5% of the vote in the referendum.

In the 2020 Puerto Rican general election, the Puerto Rican Independence Party achieved 13.6% of the vote, a significant increase in support from the 2016 Puerto Rican general election when it received only 2.1% of votes. Similarly, the anti-colonial Movimiento Victoria Ciudadana party achieved an additional 14% of the vote in the 2020 elections.