By Anna Sudar
May 11, 2009
Source: The Post, Ohio U.
Sixteen years ago, Alina Fernandez, the daughter of Fidel Castro, fled
Cuba for the United States. Monday night, she will share her experiences
growing up in Cuba after the 1959 Cuban Revolution as the keynote
speaker for Ohio University's International Week.
Fernandez was close to her father as a child, but as an adult she got
involved with a dissident political movement and was forced to leave the
country. Her book, Castro's Daughter: An Exile's Memoir of Cuba, was
published in 1998, and a movie about her life is expected to begin
production this year.
The Post's Anna Sudar spoke with Fernandez about being a writer, talking
to students and the Obama administration's Cuban policy.
The Post: What will you be talking about at OU?
Alina Fernandez: I'll be speaking about how it is to grow up in Cuba
with some personal anecdotes that some people might find funny or
interesting. A mix of personal anecdotes with the story of the
environment is what I want to transmit. I'm a first line witness.
Post: Why do you like speaking to college students?
Fernandez: I get a lot of feedback and I like to inform as much as I
like to be informed. ... I get back your impressions of the future and
what you know about (Cuba). It's always very interesting.
Post: What made you decide to write a book and talk about your experiences?
Fernandez: If they offer you money for it, go ahead and do it (laughs).
... I'm a night person, so I used to write every night of my life. And
for me writing was like breathing, but I never wanted to show my writing
to anybody. So the experience of being published has been so traumatic,
I haven't written anymore.
Post: What are your thoughts on President Obama's recent lift of the
travel ban to Cuba?
Fernandez: I think the lifting of the restriction is of course a
positive thing. (Cuban-Americans) were the only community in the United
States that weren't allowed to visit or send money to our families. It's
crazy.
Post: What does it mean to you to be the Keynote speaker for
International Week?
Fernandez: I feel totally honored. ... I think it's wise of (OU to have
International Week) because this country is so big and important that
sometimes you live like (you're) in a cave. And it's good to learn about
the outside. I would like Cuban students to be able to do that also, to
have the freedom to invite whoever they want and to speak things the way
they want instead of being politicized. I would like that for my country.
Castro' s daughter talks about growing in Cuba, Obama' s policy | UWIRE
(12 May 2009)
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