Communism has killed over 100 million people globally. Sadly, it still lives on today in Cuba.
For 62 years, Cubans have suffered under it.
They aren’t protesting COVID-19 vaccine shortages; they’re protesting central planning. They’re shouting libertad and waving the American flag because they yearn to be free, have representative government, and own private property.
Independent journalists are being arrested. Freedom activists are disappearing and being murdered. And some stateside are convinced socialism is good? Shameful.
It’s long overdue for Cuba to be free. A united global front opposing communism can propel them to reclaim their independence.
Mixed Messaging from the Biden Administration
The Biden administration’s messaging in wake of protests has been mediocre at best.
Acting Assistant Secretary for the State Department Julie Chung tweeted, "Peaceful protests are growing in Cuba as the Cuban people exercise their right to peaceful assembly to express concern about rising COVID case/deaths & medicine shortage. We commend the numerous efforts of the Cuban people mobilizing donations to help neighbors."
President Biden issued a statement, tweeting, “We stand with the Cuban people as they bravely assert their fundamental and universal rights, and as they all call for freedom and relief from the tragic grip of the pandemic and from the decades of repression and economic suffering.”
Absent from his tweet, as I noted, was omitting the repression directly stems from six decades of communist rule.
Adding insult to injury, Cuban-born DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said no Cubans seeking political asylum will be permitted on our shores. But those who enter the U.S. illegally? Come in! He said:
To those who risk their lives doing so, this risk is not worth taking. Allow me to be clear. If you take to the sea, you will not come to the United States.
...
Any migrant intercepted at sea, regardless of their nationality, will not be permitted to enter the United States.
Hypocritical coming from him, no? Are they worried these refugees will bring an anti-communist message with them or vote Republican one day if granted citizenship? Ridiculous.
When Rappers Understand Communism’s Threat Better Than Most Democrats
Cuban-American rapper Pitbull, whose real name is Armando Christian Pérez, delivered an impassioned message online about supporting Cubans.
He said, “This is a message to the world. We need to stand up, step up, but if you don't understand what's going on and you need to wake the f--- up,”
“And it gets me hot, it bothers me, it frustrates me to a certain extent, being a Cuban American and having a platform to speak to the world and not being able to help my own people, not being able to get them food, not being able to get them water, not being able to get the medicine,” Pitbull added. "But most of all, not being able to help, and really get them what they deserve ... which is freedom.”
Democrats, take a page from Pitbull. This is how you denounce communism.
Talk is Cheap Where Action Is Needed
President Joe Biden’s statement is meaningless if there’s no teeth to it.
Governor Ron DeSantis, who governs a state home to the largest Cuban-American population in the U.S., urged President Biden to find a way to restore Internet access there.
“I write to urge you to assist in providing Internet access to the people of Cuba standing up against communist oppression and demanding a voice after decades of suffering under the yoke of a cruel dictatorship,” said DeSantis.
“Technology exists to provide Internet access into Cuba remotely, using the innovation of American enterprise and the diverse industries here. Similar to the American efforts to broadcast radio into the Soviet Union during the Cold War in Europe, the federal government has a history of supporting the dissemination of information into Cuba for the Cuban people through Radio & Televisión Martí, located in Miami. In addition to sending information, however, our efforts must include creating a means for the Cuban people to speak to the world.”
The U.S. isn’t Responsible for Cuba’s Woes
President John F. Kennedy signed Proclamation 3447 on February 3rd, 1962, establishing the Cuban embargo. His reasoning? To reduce “the threat posed by its alignment with the communist powers.”
Today, many Democrats and Marxist organizations claim the U.S. — not the communist regime — is responsible for Cuba’s condition.
Black Lives Matter, an avowed Marxist organization, issued a statement peddling this lie.
“The people of Cuba are being punished by the U.S. government because the country has maintained its commitment to sovereignty and self-determination,” the organization said. “United States leaders have tried to crush this revolution for decades.”
Their statement prompted Odette Casamayor-Cisneros, an associate professor of Romance Languages at the University of Pennsylvania, to excoriate the organization.
"I am Black & Cuban and deeply hurt by the #BLM statement on Cuban protests," Casamayor-Cisneros offered. "They are blind and deft to the Cuban ppl, to their demands. With whom is their solidarity? Certainly not with the people in the streets. LISTEN to us."
The Heritage Foundation noted in 1994, “The truth, however, is that Cuba's economic destruction was caused by the regime's ruinous economic policies. Specifically, Castro's command economy, based on a 1976 constitution and laws which prohibit private enterprise and ownership of property, completely destroyed the free market in Cuba, hindering economic growth and prosperity.”
Conclusion
Yesterday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki condemned communism in Cuba.
“Communism is a failed ideology,” Psaki declared. “It has failed the people of Cuba. They deserve freedom.”
President Biden also admitted, "Communism is a failed system. A universally failed system. And I don't see socialism as a very useful substitute…”
See, that wasn’t hard? Public pressure works, guys and gals.
It isn’t hard to condemn communism. Like Nazism, it’s revolting and deadly.
Viva Cuba Libre and patria y vida! Freedom is contagious. Let’s pray Cubans succeed in regaining their independence.
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