Fidel Castro: Dictator NOT a Revolutionary Leader
As a Cuban refugee I rejoice that the symbol is dead. But I still know that the ideology is very much alive.Â
Fidel Castro has terrorized us for years. And now the day has come, he is dead. But nothing has changed my fellow Cubans who have remained will continue to endure the regime and swallow the renewed hope that has come with these news.Â
And here I sit, watching people (Read: Non Cubans) mourn the death of a âmonsterâ as stated by his own sister, Cuban exile Juana Castro. Castro was not a good man.
He ripped families apart. He took our liberties. He silenced our people. Do not let the media fool you into thinking he was a President or cared for anything but the success of his regime.Â
Here is just a small list of what Castro has done:
Mass executions of counter-revolutionaries by Castroâs firing squads. An estimated 30,000 deaths solely from this since he came to power.Â
He shut down all independent newspapers upon his rise to power.Â
He held over 15,000 political prisoners.Â
He created re-education camps for LGBT to correct âdeviationsâ. Effeminate males were heavily prosecuted without trial or charge. as well as forced incarceration for anyone that tested HIV positive.Â
One July morning in 1994 a group of 72 Cubans boarded a state-owned tugboat (named 13 de Marzo) with the intent to navigate it to freedom. Within minutes the vessel was under attack by other state-owned tugboats. By the time the incident was over 41 Cubans were dead. 10 of them were children.
Denied the right to vote against Castro and his party in âfree electionsâ
Castro formed Committees for the Defense of the Revolution(CDR) which operate on almost every block in Cuba. Spying on neighbors and reporting back to the regime. Negative reports can land one in jail.
School children âprayâ to Castro.Â
Ordered doctors to inject mercury into patients who criticized the poor quality of Cubaâs free medical services
All media is heavily censored and the spreading of âunauthorized newsâ a criminal offence, with internet access heavily limited by cost and restrictions. (To give you an idea my family members in Cuba could be sent to jail if they were caught corresponding with me via e-mail)
Prior to January 13, 2013, Cuban citizens could not travel abroad, leave or return to Cuba without first obtaining official permission along with applying for a government issued passport and travel visa, which was often denied.
Following the Cuban Revolution all activities of the catholic church were severely limited and in 1961 all property held by religious organizations was confiscated without compensation.Â
Castroâs regime violates almost every single article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.Â
His regime has led to an estimated 3 million Cubanâs (more than 25% of the current population) fleeing the country due to persecution since taking power.Â
But enough of this.
Today I am grateful for the strength and bravery of my mimi and papi who refused to conform to living under a communist and totalitarian nation. I am thankful that though fear clung to their bones they left everything they had in the hopes of freedom, in the hopes of a better life for me. Â Today, I am thankful to hear my momâs voice break with the strengths of her sobs. Today, I am thankful to see videos of my fellow Cubans embracing each other, crying, waving our flag, dancing, and singing (Our beautiful La Bayamesa).
There is still much work to be done. But today, I leave you with the words of Willy Chirino:
âHoy que mi pueblo vive ilusionado yo me siento inspirado y un son estoy cantando anunciĂĄndole a todos mis hermanos que nuestro dĂa ya viene llegandoâŠâ
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