Guillermo I. Martinez | Columnist
December 25, 2008
Jan. 1 will be the 50th anniversary of the Cuban revolution.
It will mark the day when Cuba became a communist country and its people
forced to live in poverty and in constant fear of a repressive regime
that has ruled the island longer than any other government in the
Western Hemisphere.
Those who defend Fidel Castro's communist regime say the country has one
of the lowest infant mortality rates in the world, eliminated
illiteracy, and provided free basic healthcare and education for all.
Those who oppose the Cuban tyrant say that even if true, the price the
island's population had to pay for those privileges was too high.
Cubans, who 50 years ago had one of the highest per capita incomes in
Latin America, now are an impoverished nation, some say as poor as
Haiti. Thousands have died in front of firing squads or trying to leave
the island. Political prisons are full. And somewhere between two and
three million people have abandoned the island seeking a better life
abroad — a vast majority of them in the United States.
Thus Jan. 1, 2009, also marks the 50th anniversary of the latest
migration of Cubans to the United States. Throughout its history Cubans
had been coming to the United States — mainly to New York, Tampa, Key
West, and Miami — seeking political refuge. Most of those who came went
back as soon as they could. A few stayed behind in Tampa and Key West.
But, Jan. 1, 1959, was different. Castro would do anything to remain in
power. And he did. Cubans who came to the United States for a short
exile stayed. Months became years, then decades. This time they settled
in New Jersey and in South Florida.
Many of those who came in the early years still yearn to return to their
homeland even as their hope fades with each passing year. Sadly each
year fewer of them remain. Behind they have left children,
grandchildren, and even great grandchildren born in this country.
They are Americans of Cuban parents who love the land where their
ancestors came from like the Jews care for Israel. They also yearn to
see a free Cuba but do not seek to return to reclaim properties of
material benefits. They yearn to reclaim their heritage and the memories
of their elders and for Cuba to be free.
Guillermo I. Martínez lives in South Florida. His e-mail is:
Guimar123@gmail.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/sfl-gmcol25sbdec25,0,2900997.column
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