May 20 is an important date for Cubans. It is the date that 101 years ago, Cuba became an independent nation, free from Spanish rule and American occupation.
But with the Communist revolution of 1959 and dictator Fidel Castro’s subsequent rise to power, Cuba was once again plunged into totalitarian rule.
It was with this in mind that Union City Mayor Brian Stack and members of his board of commissioners marked Cuban Independence Day, categorically denouncing Fidel Castro and his iron-fisted rule.
A ceremony was held in Union City City Hall, during which United Cuban Organizations representative Matthew Perez accepted a proclamation from Stack and Union City commissioners Michael Leggiero and Christopher Irizarry honoring two recently imprisoned activists in Cuba.
Mayor Stack was uncharacteristically blunt in his condemnation of Cuba’s current rule.
“When will it end?” the mayor asked. “When will the Cuban people be free? Again, we will ‘wait ’till next year’ when we will probably ask the same question.”
Stack lambasted the United Nations for not moving in a more decisive manner on the issue of human rights abuses in Cuba. Said the mayor, “It really makes you wonder if anyone is really paying attention.”
The mayor’s comments could perhaps be seen through a political lens, judging from the fact that Union City is a predominantly Latino city and the majority of Stack’s constituents are Latino. However, the effusiveness of Stack’s comments indicated that Cuban freedom is an issue he takes to heart.
Stack drew hearty applause from the small group of gathered citizens when he said, “I am speaking plainly here, no politics, that when I hear people say ‘let the Cuban people do it on their own,’ that’s bull, just bull. That’s something that just doesn’t make any sense. Remember, Castro laughed at the United States on 9/11.”
The proclamation that Stack gave Perez honored Jose Gabriel Ramon Castillo and Librado Linares Garcia. On March 18, 2002, some 75 dissidents were rounded up and subsequently sentenced to lengthy prison terms after being convicted in brief trials for collaborating with American diplomats on the island. Three would-be hijackers were also tried and executed.
Recently, President George Bush met with Cuban dissidents and former political prisoners. According to a recent article in The New York Times, “Last year’s anniversary, he [Bush] gave a speech on the White House lawn, then flew to Miami to preside at an anti-Castro rally that drew thousands.”
Obviously, Cuba and the Castro regime is on the minds of not only local politicians but also those on a national level.
In the same Times article, White House spokesperson Sean McCormack said that the president’s meeting last week “reinforces the fact that we have, not far off our shores, a brutal, non-democratic regime that oppresses its people. You have an entire country that is under the heel of this brutal regime, repressing the hopes of its people for a better way of life.”
This statement echoes those of Stack who, in a February 2003 Reporter article said, “Very simply, Castro must go.” The mayor added at the time, “I’ve said this in the past, and I’ll say it here – How is it that Castro is still in power when Cuba is 90 miles off our coast?”
Stack drew applause a second time when he said, “If Cuba had oil, the United States would have been in there years ago. It’s a sad comment on the leadership of our country, no matter Republican or Democrat, that this continues to go on.”
Matthew Perez, in his acceptance of the proclamations, said, “We dream of the day when it will be our turn to recognize you [Stack and his commissioners] in Cuba for all you have done.” Continued Perez, “The recent liberation of Iraq gives us hope. Perhaps we will soon see the beginning of the end of Castro’s regime.”
Union City Commissioner Christopher Irizarry, who is of Cuban decent, said, “This is a very difficult time of year for us. We come here year after year and see the crowd getting smaller. Every year there is a different conflict the United States gets involved with, but Cuba seems to not even be on the map of the U.S.” Added Irizarry, “I hope and pray that the 20th of May will be history and that we can celebrate the true independence of Cuba.”