¡Cuba Libre! (A dedication to a man who is, in my opinion, the epitome of Miami)

While New York relishes in its Puerto Rican population, San Francisco in its Asian population, Texas in its Mexican population, and so on and so forth, Miami literally is the spitting image of what can be seen on the streets of Havana. The only difference(s) between Miami and Cuba is the fact that people can succeed and make a means to live, say what they want, and protest peacefully (although we all know us Cubans get very passionate about certain issues, so our peaceful is the rest of the country's chaos) But why is it that many who live outside of Miami (even some Cubans!) hold such a resentment towards the city because of their Cuban population? The answer is simple: the only people who know the truth about Castro's Cuba and aren't ashamed to tell you are that same Cuban population that resides within the county limits of the infamous Miami-Dade in South Florida. The distorted image that is given off that "Castro is not that bad" and that "the real ones to blame are the Miami Cubans" is given off by those who don't have stories to share regarding oppression they suffered in the communist country or those who have never been exposed to these heart wrenching tales. My cousin was a political prisoner in Cuba. Do these so-called humans who claim "Castro is not that bad" truly know the definition of a political prisoner? Basically, all of these Bush-bashers could be political prisoners....that is, if America was a communist country and Bush was the dictator. Could you imagine that? After the 2004 election, it is evident that just about half of the country could be political prisoners. My mother worked in sugar cane fields while she was pregnant with my brother in the early 70's so that she could be granted persmission to leave Cuba. And a few weeks after she gave birth, she returned to the fields to work in the scorching sun. But my mother's story is not the only one. Other's have more gruesome stories that perhaps involve violence, starvation, or even death. As a child of one of the sufferers who lived through one of those upsetting stories, do I not owe it to my mother to share her hating and "I spit on you" attitude towards the bearded devil? Would it not be a blow to the heart for my mother to have her youngest daughter come home and say, "Mami, I don't think Castro is that bad." Would it not be turning my back on everything that my parents have provided for us in this wonderful, free country? I, like my mother, share the exact same attitude that we will not visit Cuba until the bearded devil has burned. Why visit while he is still alive? To give my hard-earned money to him so that he may continue to oppress those poor prisoners, because in Cuba, althought they do not live behind bars, everyone is a prisoner in Cuba. I don't want to go too in depth with this post because I could literally type for days, but I did want to shed some light on this topic after being inspired by this particular article that appeared on the front page of my hometown's newspaper: http://www.babalublog.com/archives/001353.html (this site will redirect you to the article when you click on story)