The Island's Pride and Joy
{UPDATED: Monday, June 3, 2019}
{UPDATED: Monday, June 3, 2019}
When people around the world think of Cuba they first are reminded of two words -- Fidel and Revolution. But before the world ever heard of Fidel's Victorious Revolution Cuba had produced revolutionary icons like Jose Marti prior to the 1950's. A well-to-do Cuban poet in the USA, Marti by 1895 had returned to his beloved island to fight against the centuries-old Spanish rule of Cuba. Marti was killed by Spanish soldiers on Cuban soil and his blood from that battlefield kept alive Cuba's renowned revolutionary spirit -- paving the way for Fidel's Victorious Revolution in 1959 after the imperial-minded United States had easily defeated vastly over-extended Spain on Cuban soil in 1898 in the Spanish-American War. INCREDIBLY, for the past six+ decades Revolutionary Cuba has survived as an independent nation despite concerted and no-holds-barred DAILY attempts from the nearby World Superpower to recapture the pugnacious island, apparently for the pernicious goal of returning the remnants of the pre-Fidel USA-backed Batistiano-Mafiosi dictatorship to their once lucrative Caribbean playpen. When such factual roundhouse historic facts emerge with today's topical reality, Jose Marti's poetic words, I believe, explain why...against all odds...Revolutionary Cuba has managed to sustain its independence. And the Golden Seven Jose Marti words shown above are perhaps his most palpable revolutionary expression: "Los ninos son la esperanza del mundo." Translated to English, those 7 magnificent words are: "Children are the hope of the world." Permit me to explain, if you will, why I think Revolutionary Cuba's adoption of those 7 Jose Marti words have enabled the vulnerable island to hold off a return of the firmly U.S.-based Batistianos!!
During the U.S.-backed Batista-Mafia dictatorship from 1952 till 1959 it is well-known that the Batistianos, Mafiosi, and rich American businessmen literally robbed the island of Cuba at will. But the authentic photo above reflects their first big and stupid mistake; they didn't even bother to toss crumbs at the majority Cuban peasants, a microcosm of which is shown here.
But the extreme poverty of the majority peasants, which included no healthcare or educational help, was neither the biggest nor the stupidest mistake the Batistianos, the Mafiosi, and the USA made in Cuba in the 1950's. Their BIGGEST and STUPIDEST mistake is chronicled by the photo above. It shows brave Cuban mothers marching with huge posters denouncing the Batistiano-Mafiosi murders of their children, gruesome assassinations that apparently were meant to quell dissident revolts. They instead quelled the Revolution. The murdered Little Willie Soler was the son of the mother in the lower-left wearing the sunglasses and the white blouse. Today -- in this first week of June, 2019 -- a major Children's Hospital is named for...Little Willie Soler. So, if you study the two black-and-white 1950's photos above you will, I believe, begin to comprehend why and how Revolutionary Cuba since 1959 has managed to remain an independent island against truly overwhelming obstacles presented daily for 6+ decades AND EMANATING from the nearby shores of the world's Superpower. From the two black-and-white 1950's definitive photos, let's advance to today's color images from the island.
Cuba's Soler Children's Hospital today.
The Soler Children's Hospital today.
Translated from Spanish to English, the words depicting today's Cuban photo are: "Neighborhood Talent. A project where children have fun learning and creating." Since 1959 the Cuban narrative in the U. S. has been dictated almost exclusively by Counter Revolutionary extremists. That masks the reality of the above image. Yes, Cuban children in Revolutionary Cuba since 1959 have been vastly better cared for than the majority but non-elite Cuban children during the U.S.-backed Batista-Mafia dictatorship from 1952 till 1959. Since 1959 in Revolutionary Cuba, children have been guaranteed free educations through college and free healthcare for life, not to mention free food and shelter if needed.
Cuban children -- June, 2019.
As I show you more Cuban children in June of 2019, you might be tempted to say that, while denouncing Batistiano anti-Cuban propaganda in the U. S., I'm dispensing my own pro-Cuba propaganda. That simply is not so. I'm a fiercely pro-Democracy, pro-American zealot who happens to think that the Cuban Revolution says a lot more about the USA than it says about Cuba. I've been to Cuba and spent my time with everyday Cubans. Because of the stark contrast between the black-and-white photos from Batista's Cuba with the color photos from today's Revolutionary Cuba, I sincerely believe that a prime secondary reason for the Batistiano-directed U. S. policy of restricting American visits to the island is to enhance the Batistiano dictation of the USA's Cuban narrative. Of course, the prime reason for restricting American visits to the island is to annihilate the Cuban economy, softening up the planned recapture of the island. Of course, if that is not so, perhaps some Batistiano spokesman from Little Havana in Miami or from the U. S. Congress could elucidate us as to the TOP TWO REASONS for the U. S. Embargo of Cuba since 1962 and for the insanely cruel Helms-Burton Act since 1996 and for the even more insanely cruel activation of Helms-Burton's Title 3 in April of 2019. As I remember what I have observed in Cuba and as I study the authentic updated photos above, I don't think there is a single Counter Revolutionary zealot from Little Havana that wants to discuss the contrast between the black-and-white photos and these color photos.
In the annals of U.S.-Cuban relations, this photo is about as topical as it could get. It was taken Saturday, June 1st, 2019. Almost every Cuban on the island now has access to the Internet and the digital social media. This image at the top included this headline: "Happy Childhood." It's caption said: "Celebrating International Children's Day in their own way -- DANCING!!!" I happen to know the mother of the 5-year-old girl in the front-center. That well-educated, healthy, talented, and devoted mother could fly to Miami with her little girl and partake of luxury in a given hour's whim. But that's the last thing on her mind. Thus, that mother and millions of other mother's on the island since 1959 remind me of...CELIA SANCHEZ, which explains two basic facts: {1} Why the Cuban Revolution won in 1959; and {2} Why Revolutionary Cuba still survives in June, 2019.
The child-loving doctor's daughter Celia Sanchez was the Heart & Soul of both the Cuban Revolution and Revolutionary Cuba. As the above book illustration points out, Fidel Castro called Celia the "most beautiful flower of our revolutionary hearts." The top Cuban historian Pedro Alvarez Tabio wrote: "If Batista had managed to kill Celia Sanchez anytime between 1953 and 1957 there would have been no viable Cuban Revolution, and no revolution for Fidel and Che to join." The conservative American columnist Georgie Anne Geyer wrote the best U. S. biography of Fidel Castro -- "GUERRILLA PRINCE" -- and Ms. Geyer correctly pointed out that Fidel Castro and all the other rebel leaders worshipped Celia, with Ms. Geyer stressing that Celia "over-ruled Fidel" wherever and whenever she chose, which turned out to be rather often. {Please Note: When I mention a name or an event I expect anyone who doubts what I say TO GOOGLE that name or event. That's why you will see on the right a "W" that stands for Wikipedia. Type in, for example, a name I use in this paragraph -- "Georgie Anne Geyer" -- and you will get her bio...which will confirm she was a long-time U. S. conservative columnist but is best remembered for her Castro bio. And, by the way, you will know she died in Washington a few weeks ago, on May 15, 2019}.
In the crucial early days of the long-shot Cuban Revolution, Celia Sanchez was not only a nonpareil guerrilla fighter but she was the primary recruiter of rebels, money, and supplies that made the revolution viable. While both Fidel and history register his ill-fated attack on Batista's Moncada Garrison on July 26, 1953, as the start of the revolution, Fidel himself spent the next two years in a Batista prison. The rebel who kept the revolution viable was Celia Sanchez. When Fidel, Che, Raul, Camilo, and other notable rebels...after their nearly disastrous trek from Mexico...finally joined the revolutionary fight in late December of 1956, it was Celia Sanchez's viable guerrilla force that they joined...but only after Celia's rebels for three days fought off a superior Batista army that killed all but 17 of the 82 rebels who had barely arrived from Mexico on the old, sinking yacht named Granma.
During the Revolutionary War {on the right} and in Revolutionary Cuba {on the left}, Celia Sanchez...always with Fidel Castro's concurrence and fierce support...remained the prime decision-maker. After becoming a chain-smoker during the war, Celia died of lung-cancer at age 59 on January 11th, 1980. By then, I believe, she had enshrined herself as the all-time greatest female revolutionary fighter and leader. Americans, of course, are not supposed to know that because demonizing Fidel Castro was and is a lot easier than trying to demonize the angelic, child-loving Celia Sanchez.
After the triumph of the Cuban Revolution in January of 1959, this photo reflects CELIA SANCHEZ'S immediate imprint on Revolutionary Cuba. To educate and provide health care for the impoverished Cuban peasants, 200,000 volunteers...many of them former rebels like the one on the left in this photo...were sent out across the island to educate parents, most of whom could neither write nor read. The pure significance of the Cuban Literary Campaign is a part of history and can be easily Goggled if Americans care. During this period, Celia Sanchez and other renowned female rebels like Vilma Espin and Haydee Santamaria made sure that all Cubans were guaranteed free educations through college and free healthcare for life.
This historic photo is more historic than Americans are supposed to realize. It shows on the right a young female guerrilla fighter who helped win the Cuban Revolution on January 1, 1959. She then was among the 200,000 volunteers who were sent cascading across the island to teach the maligned adult peasants how to read and write. But don't take my word for it. Use the "W" on the right side of this page and type in "Cuban Literacy Campaign." Then the "Wikipedia" apt will take you to copious pages about the first major priority of Revolutionary Cuba to correct the evils of the Batista dictatorship. That Wikipedia data regarding the CUBAN LITERACY CAMPAIGN begins with these exact words: "The Cuban Literacy Campaign was a year-long effort to abolish illiteracy in Cuba after the Cuban Revolution. It began on January 1, 1959, and ended on December 22, 1961, becoming the world's most ambitious organized literacy campaign." In June of 2019 the Little Havana Counter Revolutionaries who largely dictate the Cuban narrative in the U. S. do not want you to Google the "Cuban Literacy Campaign" but I believe you should to obtain historic facts, even IF they shed a positive light on the Cuban Revolution.
And, uh...yes, America, Revolutionary Cuba's famed Literacy Campaign continued correcting the Batista dictatorship's evils EVEN DURING the April-1961 Bay of Pigs attack that was intended to overthrow the Revolution and restore the Batista-Mafia rule on the island. As a USA democracy-lover, my point is this: The right-wing thugs in Washington who sicced the Mafia and Batista on Cuba in 1952 should be held accountable by history and I believe those thugs included VP Richard Nixon, CIA Director Alan Dulles, and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles. Likewise, I believe the right-wing thugs who supported such things as the Bay of Pigs attack in April-1961 and such things as Operation Northwoods should be held accountable, at least by history. If you Google "Operation Northwoods" you will discover that the early 1960's General Lemnitzer-led Joint Chiefs of Staff, for example, begged neophyte President John Kennedy to approve their scheme, which was to murder totally innocent Americans so the mayhem could be blamed on Revolutionary Cuba and used as the pretext for the military overthrow of post-Batista Revolutionary Cuba. So, as you study the history of Cuba's famed Literacy Campaign, be sure to Google such things as Operation Northwoods too. During your research, I believe you will discover that both the Cuban Revolution {1953-1959} and Revolutionary Cuba {January of 1959 till June of 2019} have essentially been historic events primarily propelled by extraordinary Cuban females, with CELIA SANCHEZ and her legacy at the forefront.
With full backing from Fidel Castro, these three female guerrilla fighters during the war -- Vilma Espin, Celia Sanchez, and Haydee Santamaria -- after the war imprinted their island in 1959 with other features that have sustained Revolutionary Cuba into June of 2019 and those vital features include THE FEDERATION OF CUBAN WOMEN and the block-by-block COMMITTEES FOR THE DEFENSE OF THE REVOLUTION.
In June of 2019 there are many beautiful statues and other remembrances of Celia Sanchez on the island of Cuba. And that's fitting because she is history's all-time greatest revolutionary heroine...and her cause was just because it was for the welfare of Cuba's children. And Cuban children TODAY owe Celia Sanchez a huge debt because she remains an integral part of their history.
In other words, I believe, an historic Celia Sanchez quotation best defines her Cuban Revolution: "We rebels...get far too much credit for winning the revolution. Our enemies deserve most of the credit, for being greedy cowards and idiots." Those, uh..."greedy cowards and idiots," as I pointed out earlier in this essay, were stupid not to {1} Have thrown a few crumbs to the majority peasants; and {2} they were incredibly stupid for thinking that murdering children would not totally outrage the Cuban mothers on the island.
Incredibly, in June of 2019 the activation of Helms-Burton Title 3 by the Batistiano/Little Havana-controlled Trump administration is intended ONCE AND FOR ALL to starve and eviscerate Cubans on the island -- Cubans who, as shown above, are giving Title 3 their middle finger.
Title 3 of Helms-Burton attires the USA's Uncle Sam with a Pinocchio nose, a skull hat, and a dagger-pronged beard while the nicely attired Cuban on the island pointedly calls it an infringement on "nuestra dignidad" or "our dignity!!!" For sure, even democracy-loving Americans like me agree with that little guy's characterization.
As the USA imposes the genocidal Helms-Burton Title 3 on Cuba in June of 2019, each day the island's REVOLUTIONARY SWORD holds off the world's Superpower garners respect for Cuba while belittling the USA.
As you might imagine, if she were alive today CELIA SANCHEZ would have some choice words to describe the "greedy idiots" within the bowels of the U. S. government stirring the insanely cruel Helms-Burton pot.
Yet, even with another Little Havana-controlled Republican in the White House in June of 2019, there are decent, peace-loving, and democracy-loving American doves trying to escape the pernicious clutches of Batistiano-dictated America and fly off to Cuba with peacefully sane intentions.
Yet, as the world's economic and military SUPERPOWER even a Batistiano-directed United States government can buy-off or scare-off countries around the world who might want to make their own independent decisions regarding Cuba. Title 3 of Helms-Burton is designed to drastically punish pro-Cuban nations and, of course, to drastically enrich the latest generation of exiles from the long-ago BATISTA-MAFIA dictatorship in Cuba. That's why the "EXTRATERRITORIAL" reach of the Superpower USA is depicted as being dictatorial in the above graphic.
The Helms-Burton Act back in 1996 was written by only the richest, most powerful, and most extremists Cuban-born Counter Revolutionaries such as Jorge Mas Canosa and Lincoln Diaz-Balart. Its two-fold intention, as always, was to eviscerate Cubans on the island and to enrich Cubans in Miami. But not even the Batistiano-aligned George W. Bush presidency would enact Title III of Helms-Burton because of its genocidal aspects towards the Cubans on the island and because it severely punishes companies and nations that might have or had the audacity to deal with Cuba.
The activation of the insanely cruel Title 3 of Helms-Burton is strictly a product of the lightweight Little Havana U. S. Senator Marco Rubio being anointed the USA's Cuban dictator by President Donald Trump. The rationale for Trump is that Rubio and his fellow Miami Counter Revolutionary extremists can and will gift Trump with Florida's lofty total of 29 electoral votes heading into the 2020 re-election campaign. In 2016 Trump edged out Democrat Hillary Clinton 48% to 47% to capture Florida's bundle of electoral votes on the way to becoming America's most astounding and most Batistiano-controlled U. S. President.
The infamous Helms-Burton Act reflects the fact that right-wing Batistiano sycophants such as Jesse Helms and Dan Burton are always around to do the bidding of Counter Revolutionary extremists from Miami's Little Havana fiefdom.
This graphic points out that Helms-Burton in the TRUMP-RUBIO era evolves into what amounts to be Helms-BOLTON because RUBIO has successfully ordered TRUMP to appoint extreme war-mongers like John Bolton into ultra-powerful war-mongering positions.
Thus it was Washington's most infamous war-monger John Bolton who was officially accorded the honor of declaring war on Revolutionary Cuba. As shown above, Bolton made that gutless declaration in Little Havana territory while standing before a Brigada Asalto 2506 banner, the Battle Flag for the Counter Revolutionary extremists who attacked Cuba...AND HUMILIATINGLY LOST...at the BAY OF PIGS way back in April of 1961. While the image above doesn't remotely embarrass the likes of RUBIO and TRUMP, I sincerely believe it embarrasses...or should embarrass...every democracy-loving American and Cuban-American.
Meanwhile, on the island of Cuba every mother is keenly aware of John Bolton's declaration of war against Cuba and every Cuban mother is having to cope with the newly activated starvation-intentions of Helms-Burton Title 3. Thus, Cuban mothers these days are holding their precious children a little bit tighter than usual. And...perhaps...American mothers should be doing the same.
And that's because a U. S. democracy that is not strong enough to adequately deal with the deadly genocidal aspects of Helms-Burton may well, in the long run, be as dangerous to America as it is to Cuba.
