Rest in Peace & in Power..........Viva Fidel y Raul--and the Cuban Revolutionary People...! When the doors of Cuba were closed, the Virgin Islands of the United States became the "New America's Playground" with all the corruption and its tendrils. That was/still is an interesting time for us. Many Virgin Islanders had returned in the 60's after participating actively in the Civil Rights Movement only to return home to beaches they were no longer welcomed or allowed to swim at. Those were the days when the Governor was appointed by the President. The PTB locally as well as federally thought our home would be the perfect place to set up hotels, gambling and a paradise for the elite.
The hotels were encouraged to purchase land along the coastline because no one in the Virgin Islands can own a beach, the coastlines were given to the People of the newly formed Virgin Islands within the Treaty/Transfer of power from the Danish to the US. People like my Mother formed the Free Beach Movement with the objective to take back the beaches through public awareness & swim-ins. Many of these folks were considered a threat to the newly recognized tourism product. This group of people forced the Virgin Islands Government to protect by law, the People's right to beach access. Members of the Free Beach Movement had their lives & livelihoods threatened, forced in to exile, driven crazy or compromised. The V.I. Legislature at the time passed a law proclaiming all beaches & coastlines free, however if there no access was provided then you have to have a boat. Real slick.
https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/united-states/save-our-beach-dem-and-our-land-too-problems-
Before Fidel, Cuba was a virtual plantation with the same discriminatory practices and human rights abuses of a slave plantation. I was fortunate enough to visit Cuba for two weeks on an educational tour. My lessons taught me/us how to do more with less. There were people I met who had left Cuba only to return because they were happier with their sense of well being, which did not come from material things. People seemed to embrace family, life, culture, music, sports, farming, etc.. Some of my colleagues were unhappy with the limited food (what did they expect?), but it was organic and a chicken looked like a chicken. People were willing to give us their last and were insulted if you didn't take it. That's why it is the custom to bring something when visiting someone's home.
Which is the one nation that sends its doctors & supplies to other countries in need? I'm not saying the system is perfect, however, the Cuban People seemed to have even more democracy than I who lives in a colony under the US flag. One of my good friends was the wife of an ambassador, she had the opportunity to live outside Cuba after her husband's duties were done and she too chose to return to her beloved Cuba. She recounted for us the difficulties after the revolution, about people dying because they didn't have enough food to eat or the type of medical care necessary for all to survive during the chaos. They had to watch from outside unable to help their own families.
During the revolution not one school or hospital was closed. Everyone had to be trained and involved in self & community defense tactics and techniques. Under Fidel Castro the Cuban People learned to be creative & inventive due to the lack of available material goods. They had to rely on their own creative genius and make their society work. They replanted trees. Their shorelines & reefs rebounded. They learned how to turn sugar cane waste into energy. I could go on & on, but I was happy to have a glimpse of this great country while the embargo was in full force.
On my visit we were followed by the secret police. They were all over. If you got caught bringing drugs into the country, it was an automatic 10 year sentence. Cuba didn't need anymore troubles than they had already like a crack or heroine epidemic. They found treatments for AIDS. Some people were appalled that people diagnosed with AIDS were kept separate from the rest of the community, but those rules were for people the medical establishment thought to be promiscuous. One of our Fountain Valley 5 hijacked a plane to Cuba where he still resides,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNX0CdPbNks. Cuba also celebrates and accepts revolutionaries. There is a park with the busts of revolutionaries from the Caribbean region and Latin America. Everywhere are signs and memorials to Che´Guevara as well as lesser known participants in the revolution.
May Day occurred during my visit & I had the opportunity to watch Mr. Castro give a five our address to over 100,000 people in person.
After I left Cuba I was never the same again. It made me a stronger, but better person. Made me stand my ground on issues that otherwise I may have joined the ranks of silenced or exiled Virgin Islanders.
Viva Fidel y Raul! Viva Cuba!
