On March 22, 1873, the Spanish government, under pressure from abolitionist movements and the Cuban Ten Years' War, passed a law abolishing slavery in Puerto Rico, known as the Moret Law. The act freed approximately 29,000 enslaved people, with a provision for a period of apprenticeship for those over age 60. The abolition was met with both celebration and resistance, and it reflected the growing anti-slavery sentiment in the Spanish Empire. Puerto Rico's abolition came more than a decade before Cuba's, making it one of the earlier emancipations in the Caribbean.

The abolition of slavery in Puerto Rico has been commemorated in Puerto Rican literature, including poems and essays that reflect on the meaning of freedom and the persistence of racial inequality. Writers such as José de Diego and Luis Palés Matos have addressed the legacy of slavery in their works, while contemporary poets continue to explore the intersections of race and national identity. The event is a key moment in Puerto Rican literary history.