When on March 22, President Barack Obama called on Cubans to “leave the past behind” and “look forward to the future,” he was standing on the same stage where in 1928, the last U.S. President to visit the island spoke.
“Today Cuba is her own sovereign. Her people are independent, free, and prosperous, peaceful, and enjoying the advantages of self-government," stated Calvin Coolidge speaking in the then National Theater, now the Alicia Alonso Grand Theater of Havana.
This was the expression of support President Gerardo Machado had been looking for in order to legitimize one of the bloodiest dictatorships in the region.
Silent Cal, as the U.S. President was also known, wanted to present the island as an example of economic and social success for other nations following Washington’s dictates, while U.S. marines used other means to persuade Sandinista soldiers in Nicaragua, and citizens of the Dominican Republic to adhere to Washington’s command.
“I know the history, but I refuse to be trapped by it,” stated Obama.
Later on, the efforts of anti-imperialist fighters Julio Antonio Mella, Rubén Martínez Villena and Antonio Guiteras, successors to the country’s independence leaders such as José Martí, paved the way for the triumph of the most radical anti-imperialist Revolution the continent has ever seen, in 1959. Over half a century would pass before another U.S. President would decide to visit Cuba, this time in an attempt to “bury the last remnant of the Cold War.”
Over 1,000 people representing the most diverse spheres of Cuban civil society listened intently to every word of the President’s speech.
Speaking to Granma, Ernesto Freyre Casañas, representative of the Cuban Workers’ Federation - founded following the overthrow of the Machado dictatorship – stated, “We have heard a respectful speech, however we disagree on some aspects. We can’t forget our history, our dead, the impact of the blockade over so many years.”
”I would have liked to hear a little more of an apology for U.S. intervention, aggression and attacks against Cuba and its people since the 1960s,” noted Peter Kornbluh, co-author if the book Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations between Washington and Havana. “However, politically speaking it isn’t easy for a President to say sorry,” he noted.
”His speech was full of hopeful statements and good intentions, but these have little founding in the historic reality of relations between Cuba and the United States,” commented Jesús Arboleya, expert on Cuba-U.S. relations.
THE NEW STRATEGY
Since December 17, 2014, Cuba and the United States have been working toward opening a new chapter in their bilateral ties, spearheaded by Presidents Barack Obama and Raúl Castro.
Enrique Alemán, a member of Cuba’s Interfaith Dialogue Project, is skeptical about Washington’s “change in policy” toward Cuba. “Is it a clean strategy? Is it a clean act of reconciliation with our people?,” he questions.
During his speech, Obama stated that the U.S. did not wish to be Cuba’s enemy or change its political and economic system.
With reference to one of Martí’s best known Simple Verses, "Cultivo Una Rosa Blanca" [I Have A White Rose To Tend], the U.S President offered the Cuban people a saludo de paz [a greeting of peace].
Leyde Rodríguez Hernández, international relations professor, stated that the quote was either carelessly chosen, or Obama failed to understand the ideas of Cuba’s national hero. “He [Martí] lived in the United States and praised its values, but was also very critical of the nascent democracy, which from that very beginning was already behaving like a Plutocracy, with a government composed of the wealthy, by the wealthy and for the wealthy. This tendency has done nothing but increase through the 21st century.”
AN OUTDATED BURDEN
From Havana, the President of the United States of America called on Congress to lift the blockade against Cuba describing it as an “outdated burden on the Cuban people.”
His assertion met with a standing ovation from the audience, which included both Democratic and Republican Senators accompanying Obama on his visit.
Speaking to Granma, Democratic Senator for Massachusetts, James McGovern who has been supporting the lifting of the blockade for many years, recognized the efforts of both Presidents to date, noting, however, that now Congress must act to definitively lift the blockade.
Also talking to this publication, Republican Senator Jeff Flake, who together with Democratic representative Patrick Leahy are backing a bill to remove restrictions on U.S. citizens’ right to travel to Cuba, stated that more than regulatory changes announced by the Obama administration, the legislative branch of the U.S. government must completely eliminate the travel ban.
Tom Emmer, Republican Senator for Minnesota believes that the President’s visit and speech will help to bring the issue to the forefront of U.S. consciousnesses, and help advance the bill introduced by himself and Democratic representative for Florida, Kathy Castor, to lift certain aspects of the blockade.
FUTURE OPPORTUNITES
TheU.S. President also addressed the issue of opportunities for collaboration, recognizing the “service that thousands of Cuban doctors have delivered for the poor and suffering. “
Pedro Luis Véliz Martínez, director of the National Council of Health Science Societies, stated that cooperation in this sector is not limited to disaster situations or epidemics, as evidenced by the two countries’ joint response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. “Collaboration also means respecting Cuban internationalists, refraining from encouraging medical personnel to abandon their missions in third countries, which negatively impacts human resource training in our country.”
He likewise highlighted the possibility of selling Cuban products in the U.S. market. “We have achieved many things through our efforts and sacrifice. We do not accept this attitude of superiority, since we have demonstrated our worth in this field.”
Nicolay Casano is a genuine example of what collaboration between the two nations can achieve. Seated next to dozens of his classmates, this second-year medical student from New York, states that Cubans have “big hearts.” Despite the blockade, Nicolay had the opportunity to study on the island and noted that he is planning to return to the U.S. where he will provide free healthcare services to his community.
OUR OWN MODEL
“El futuro de Cuba tiene que estar en las manos del pueblo cubano” (Cuba’s future must be in the hands of the Cuban people), with these and other words Obama spoke about a future which many can see is already a reality.
Singer-songwriter Raúl Torres said that Obama highlighted various positive aspects of Cuba’s reality, but failed to mention that they are result of the country’s Revolution.
”We are an empowered youth, in this country we have the opportunity to do anything we like. What is more, we have things as important as guaranteed education and healthcare,” stated the author of the songs “Candil de Nieve” and “Regreso del Amigo.”
At another moment during his speech, Obama stated, “In the United States, we have a clear monument to what the Cuban people can build: it’s called Miami.”
Professor Leyde Rodríguez commented to this paper that the transformations underway in the country are not intended to “copy anyone else’s political model.”
Luis René Fernández, lecturer and researcher at the University of Havana’s Center for Hemispheric and U.S. Studies, stated that the changes the country is experiencing are designed to contribute toward building a prosperous and sustainable socialism, based on the national project led by Cuba’s greatest politicians and intellectuals.
He noted that this improvement process is being carried out across the country’s socio-economic system, but that there are aspects of Cuba’s system that shouldn’t undergo transformations. Fernández cited a recent comment by President Raúl Castro, “No one knows exactly what this socialism will be like, but it must be made to order for us, the Cuban way.”
Peter Kornbluh ends his book, published in 2014, by offering a series of recommendations to help improve relations between Washington and Havana.
At Granma’s request, the author agreed to summarize what he believes needs to happen to continue advancing along this path: “The United States must treat Cuba with respect, as an independent nation in regards to its sovereignty; it can not dictate the future or the actions of the Cuban government or people.”
