You are being told that your mother died trying to bring you to freedom. I am so sorry to have to
tell you, that's not true. The Cuban court granted your father custody of you, and your mother
decided to kidnap you. She placed your life in horrible jeopardy by putting you in a leaky,
overcrowded raft that eventually sank, killing everyone except you and two others. History is filled
with many people who risked their lives escaping to another country because, had they stayed,
they would have been imprisoned or killed.
That's not what happened in the case of your mother. Her life was not in jeopardy. Her son --
you -- was in no danger. The worst that could be said is that, in Cuba, you were in jeopardy of
receiving free health care whenever you needed it, an excellent education in one of the few
countries that has 100% literacy, and a better chance of your baby brother being born and making
it to his first birthday than if he had been born in Washington, DC.
The truth is your mother and her boyfriend snatched you and put you on that death boat because
they simply wanted to make more money. I can understand why they wanted a better life. Cuba is a
poor country. America, from 90 miles away, looks like a rich country. The majority of people who
have sailed to this country in the past have come for the same reason. Often, they have come
because they did not like living in a country, such as Cuba, where you cannot freely elect your
president and your basic rights are limited. I can understand that.
But your mother placed you in a situation where you were certain to die on the open seas (as most
of the rest did) and that is unconscionable. It was the ultimate form of child abuse, and I see now
why the Cuban judge did not give your mother custody.
The mainstream media (and of course the reactionary
looney-tunes on Fox "News" and even nuttier outlets) have
spent the last couple of months framing this issue in the context
of "sure his father deserves legal custody but evil, vicious,
babykilling Fidel will make his life a living hell in Cuba." (Well, at least
until it can be returned to its rightful owners, e.g. the descendants
of Meyer Lansky.)
And since his mother supposedly died for his sins (and probably
ours, too), we shouldn't let her sacrifice go to waste.
But mom wasn't a hero. She was simply a kidnapper who
recklessly endangered her son. And the rabid Cuban expatriate
community in Miami is ready to start a frigging war over this.
And the politicians are sucking up to them. Even the Democrats,
who don't and never will have a snowball's chance in hell of
carrying that vote.
posted by Steven Baum
4/5/2000 11:30:05 AM |
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