I wrote these notes before the ashes of Fidel Castro had been interred in the cemetery at Santiago de Cuba nearby other famous Cuban Generals. Although he ceded authority eight years ago in this country, which was the year before I visited Havana in the first of almost annual treks, which two years ago became a decision to establish our second home here, I knew Fidel was still an extremely popular figure both in Cuba and abroad. I have read books, watched television and talked endlessly to the people about life here, both Cubans and ex-pat Cuban-Americans, both before and after Fidel’s rule. Let me tell you what I have learned.
At 6:45am on November 29, my wife and I walked four blocks, along with a crowd of people going to pay homage to the late El Commandante, to the corner of Avenida 23 at Calle L, the center of El Vedado, the community where we live. The funeral procession was to pass by before 7:30am. The night before, we had watched the televised events of two million supporters of Fidel crammed together for several hours of speeches from many of the world’s leaders at the Plaza of the Revolution. They also had come to pay their respects to the man who until this week had been widely acknowledged as the greatest person alive to have moved societies, not just Cuban but throughout Latin America and Africa, from colonial imperialism to their present state of independence.
Although many people hated Fidel for what he did, he gave people their freedom and in doing so became as beloved in Harlem as in Havana and in very many countries around the world. As despicable as many people think of him, he was in the eyes of hundreds of millions a giant of a man, a personality who will be written about in positive words for centuries. I’m not his promoter, but merely an observer who sees both sides and has strong opinions that, I believe, are balanced.
Listening to the roar of two million people at the Palace of the Revolution during the formal ceremony, shouting in unison the name Fidel, repeatedly, hour after hour, obviously leaves an impression. The noise I’m sure came from Cubans who knew the world was watching the televised event and they wanted and needed all people to know that Cubans are united, that they are prepared as a nation to stand opposed to foreign interventionists who still hold fantasies of taking power and control in this country. That message was as obvious as the fact Fidel was now deceased.
Still, I had been thinking, most of the people invited to the formal affair that evening were pro-Castro, so I mulled the possibility that over the following few days when the funeral procession toured almost 600 miles of the country just maybe the same emotion in the streets and along the roadways might be somewhat subdued.
So, Pat and I walked to the terrace of the Habana Libre hotel – to the former command center of the Castro army following the success of the Revolution almost 60 years ago — for a 7:30am meeting with Fidel. The crowd on 23rd Street along LaRampa leading to the Malecon was much younger than I watched at the Plaza of the Revolution, and certainly not as Communist. These were more upscale people from El Vedado, many well-dressed families with young children, many under 35 and teenagers as well.
We did not know what to expect as the hum of the crowd dropped shortly before the funeral motorcade approached. But we saw many flags being waived. As the small two-wheel cart being pulled by an aged military jeep passed us by a few feet away – a cart like what you’d see at a construction site, but dressed up in a glistening green and gold paint — containing a multitude of simple flower arrangements surrounding a glassed enclosure that held the flag draped tiny box of Fidel’s remains – I was surprised. For a second, all I could think of was this is absolutely nothing special, not even a photo, that he had arranged this downscale affair to show he was still, as always, one of the people. That impression was immediate. Then the moment… Thousands of people surrounding us suddenly erupted in the same powerful chorus “Yo Soy Fidel! Yo Soy Fidel!” [“I am Fidel! I am Fidel!”]
The roar of the crowd round us continued as the caravan drove out of sight. If you didn’t have goosebumps, you weren’t alive. That impression will be long-lasting.
All day afterwards, I kept asking myself why did these people feel such a deep commitment to a man who had not even been their leader for eight years. I still don’t have an answer. But I figure it’s because they are Cuban and he had been their commander, their father. Not all fathers are perfect you know; but few have become world icons. All people here understand how important the Revolution was to the liberty of this country and people in other countries as Fidel and his Cuban fighters had supported other revolutions. In Africa, Fidel joined the fight to abolish Apartheid, for which the President of South Africa gave resounding thanks in his speech to the two million people in the Plaza of the Revolution the night before.
About Cuba today: It is a good news-bad news story. I’ll address both, as I see it day to day, trying to pay respects to the enraged families of many ex-pat Cubans in Miami as well as to the supporters of late Fidel Castro.
Most Americans have been told that the Cuban people have no wealth, destitute even; so, let’s compare. Before I do, let me remind you that being poor in material terms, i.e., compared to the American dream, is not believed by all people in the world to be superior to many other qualities of one’s life.
About money, here are some facts. The per-capita government debt of Cuba is a tiny fraction of what it is in the US and the rest of the developed world. The Cuban children and grandchildren will not be in debt for their lifetime and those of their children and their children’s children, as they are and will be in America. The Cuban people may have few material assets but they also have no personal debt. They have no mortgages on their homes, no loans against their cars, no student loans, no credit card debt.
What other country can say their people have bank accounts but are free of banks? Their homes are theirs to fix and sell as they wish. Their superb education and training in all walks of life has been paid for, and they are among the most educated, intellectually sophisticated people on earth. Their culture in the arts and music is deeply rooted and something to behold. Their healthcare and medicine is free and there are more doctors per capita here than in any other country by far. Moreover, each home has been gifted things like a new refrigerator, rice-cooker, and pressure cooker and LED lightbulbs. Families are provided free food cards for essentials. Water and natural gas for their homes is almost free. Over a full year, their electricity bill is well under 10% of what Canadians pay. Being celiac, I have gluten-free bread and pasties that would cost about 15 times more in Canada. Diabetics are also cared for here. All homes and streets were fumigated to eradicate the Zika Virus – mine once weekly for seven weeks, with bi-weekly visits from medical students to check on our health. Fidel Castro fought for the poor and for basic human necessities of life unlike anything I have ever witnessed.
The positives continue. If the people today have the personal funds to travel by plane to foreign countries that accept them without a visa, they can do so – except for doctors who can only leave by agreement. Throughout their homeland, Cubans are completely free of religious and racial discrimination. Absolutely. There are no gangs or guns or drugs – at least none that I have heard of and I have asked. The police and military of the country are strong, but fair – probably not always, but for many years. If there were a free market for real estate today, I can assure you there would not be a building on my street — Calle 15 in El Vedado — that would sell for less than $3 million, and there are a great many streets in the city finer than where I live. Many Cuban-Americans and other Cuban ex-pats are acquiring these homes and renovating them for the time when a mature real estate market has developed, and it will. In fact, there are now more Cuban-Americans returning every month than Cubans leaving the country in search of economic opportunity elsewhere. They can see the opportunity is here.
All in all, based on my travels in each country, I happen to believe that things are better here now than probably 80% of Americans have it, and I can see they are getting better here year over year while America continues to slide further into debt and, in many ways, despair. As President-elect Trump has said repeatedly about the United States, “We have bad problems here.” And the American people know it.
Obviously, there are also problems, many problems, in Cuba; most, as I have stated previously, caused by the US Congress, but many caused by Cubans as well. The Cuban authorities have the very difficult challenge ahead to remove the dual currency system in a way that is fair to the people. Inflation is becoming a concern. Should the authorities make a mistake, the impact of an inflationary spike would be highly destructive, which in other Latin American countries has led to social unrest and conflict.
Another serious problem is that Havana, as the tourist mecca, has become a city of money, hence most young people want to come from across Cuba to work here, but are prevented by laws that require them to continue residency in their own province. Despite the consequences, many come here anyway to find work that pays more than the government stipend.
As tourists know, Cuba is also one of the least internet available countries of the world. Moreover, the government media tends to show the ills of the world on national TV followed by uplifting Cuban stories, in a continuous loop, which I can see amuses the locals who understand the game. However, providing wireless internet throughout the country is happening and is now only a matter of cost since the authorities are less concerned today about what they would consider to be anti-revolutionary indoctrination of their people while digitally connected to the world as they are. It seems that Cuba has chosen Chinese technology to solve their internet infrastructure problem, so the advances are ongoing. But the authorities do shut down the external internet and phone systems during times of heightened emotion like the Fidel farewell and the Pope’s visit because they feel the need to control such communications should bad things happen during those times. To the disappointment of many, they also ban alcohol sales and partying during these times. I also think the authorities want to keep the roadways reasonably free of unnecessary traffic in the case of a sudden need to mobilize their own military vehicles. So, the cost of automobiles here is outrageous because the public is not allowed to import them even if they do have the funds. A broken-down 25-year-old Lada today sells for $12,000. A young man who owns four cars, which he rents out with drivers, told me that a car is more important than a woman because if he wants a wife the women are available; but cars are not. Love and sex are freely available in Cuba as, for most young people, there is not much more to do socially than mingle, drink inexpensive rum, listen to music and dance the night away.
Unfortunately – and I saved what I think is the worst — street-level corruption has taken hold in the past couple years. Tourists should be aware that most Cubans given the chance will try to cheat them out of money now. Paying convertible pesos (cuc) for a cab trip of say 7 cuc may get you 3 coins returned that are not dollar-equivalent cuc but cup (local pesos), which are worth about 4 cents to the dollar. In the darkness of cars without interior lights, I have fallen prey a few times. That’s embarrassing too as later you get screamed at for handing these coins to a cashier in a store thinking they are cuc. Every store cashier, even the clerks who recognize you, will try to short-change you, so you must ask for a cash register bill. One tried to beat me for about 7 cuc on a bill for 14. When I complained, she re-figured the bill and gave me maybe 5 more cuc back. I knew what she had done but as the line-up was lengthy behind me I decided to just let her keep the difference. Another one, however, wrote me a figure of 46 cuc when I knew the bill was about 20. She refused to give me the cash register bill, so I pretended to leave everything on the counter and walk out. Then she crossed out the 46 and wrote 20. I paid and left, knowing she’ll try me again next time. These are my neighborhood stores. Even Cubans are getting scammed there by the same people. I hear from them that they believe many government agency workers who handle currency now operate like the mob, having to skim say 5 cuc daily to pass along to higher-ups. We recently had a home inspection – ours is immaculate and upscale – where the inspector said he discovered water in a pan below a refrigerator that he said contained mosquito larvae. The fine would be massive – in money but even to the point of being evicted for three months – unless of course the inspector was paid. Our offer of 20 cuc (his monthly income) was flat out rejected so we offered 50 cuc, which he accepted and wrote a detailed 12-line report on how neat and compliant our home was. Blackmail in our own home – a new one on us.
Street level corruption, I think, is potentially Cuba’s most serious problem because it is a sign that the authorities are weakening during what is clearly a rapid transition here to a freer economy – low level government workers with one foot inside and one foot out of the inner circle as the people say, not unlike post-Soviet Russia.
At the end of the day, Cubans need two things: They need opportunity to earn an income at a much higher level than they can get today, which would not exist if problem number two — the US Congress-enacted treasury embargo – was resolved.
The hypocrisy of it all. American political leaders have been in and out of here on business trips – yes, Trump’s people were here a few months back, looking to buy hotel properties, and the Secretary of Commerce brought delegations from Apple, Google, Facebook, Twitter and numerous other American companies. Yet, they will not allow all other nations to trade freely with Cuba, as those nations all want to. If the US Congress still feels that US assets were unfairly confiscated and Cuban-American families tortured then why not keep the embargo in place only between Cuba and the US instead of using the rest of the free world to enforce their selective policy of retribution?
Surely this issue is not about the push for US-style democracy here because the Americans never tried to enforce imperialism on post-war Viet Nam, Iraq, or Afghanistan after those wars ended. Even following the atrocities of World Wars 1 and 2, the Germans and Japanese were helped, not oppressed, and the world was much better for it.
Cubans all understand what this issue is about – it’s about the continuing desire for economic and social control of their country – largely by a few politically-connected people in South Florida — and the Cuban people will not yield control. Cubans enjoy their independence and have bonded in true friendship with all Latin American countries. Even young people here are thankful for the Revolution and want its rights and privileges to co-exist with a free market system. That is happening, which they can see; but, within a framework of political and economic stability, the people simply want it faster. The authorities here too understand and are trying to expedite the process.
It concerns me, however, that there are many in the incoming US Administration who would flat-out desire to destabilize Cuba, as the US has tried for some 55 years without an iota of success. If the US Administration does try to push their anti-Castro (i.e., anti-Revolutionary) agenda further, they will in my view continue to fail badly. In time, affluent people from many countries, including Spain, Italy, Germany, Canada, China, Japan, Mexico, and throughout Latin America, in partnership with individual Cubans, will own the real estate, including the homes and the bars, restaurants and nightclubs, the hotels and resorts and thousands of private businesses. Cuba will in a few years evolve economically into a system not unlike China, Russia and Viet Nam. That’s happening today. In fact, the in-bound flights are full and might even be called Aero Empressario. Havana today is a construction zone. Americans — at least those who are not Cuban-Americans — because those people have returned in big numbers — can thank their screwed-up leadership for their missing out.
In closing I want to say that I personally know American students in Cuba on fully gifted scholarship for the seven-year medical program who, free of debt, will soon return to the US as fully-trained doctors who are now wondering how their new leaders could be so undignified in their latest anti-Castro remarks.
It’s just hard for me to believe the stupidity of the anti-Castro Trump-Pence-Gingrich remarks of a week ago while true diplomats from most countries – both left-wing and right-wing — traveled here to pay their respects to an international icon they and the Cuban people still humbly refer to as El Commandante. And at the same time there were millions in China, Russia, and so many other countries who were also honoring Fidel this month. Again, at the United Nations the vote was 190 to 2 in favor of ending the US embargo, and the US did not even vote to support their own policy.
Yes, there were thousands in Miami cheering the death of Fidel Castro, including a great many who as friends of Cuba were actually hoping his passing would lead to restoration of full normalization. But here in Cuba there were indisputably millions chanting “Yo Soy Fidel, Yo Soy Fidel.” Yes, millions. And, this was telling; I never heard pro-American sentiment.
This is Cuba, not Miami, and, as I have witnessed living here, Cubans have freedoms that many Americans do not have, no matter what the US media wishes to portray. And, as upsetting as it might be to some Floridians, Cuban independence, thanks to Fidel, will endure like America’s.
Love him or loathe him, thanks to Fidel Castro, the Cuban people he fought for are no longer poor. In fact, they own the most desirable forms of wealth. They have self-respect, loving families and close-knit friends, and are free of debt. They are not discriminated for reasons of race, religion or sexual orientation. These are freedoms that most Americans, if told the truth, would want.
My words may be upsetting to some readers, so I will leave with one final thought. I am a Canadian who has no dog in this fight. I am independent and objective in my views. The word medio, which is Spanish for media, refers to being in the middle, reporting all sides to all people. I strive to do that. I am not a promoter of Castro; but, as most people know, I have been a long-time advocate of America. I am a friend of both countries.
As I say, there are issues here in Cuba, including with media, that I hope to see resolved; but, I understand the reasons. The issues facing America are that much more serious today, but have not been honestly reported for several generations. For that there is no excuse. Moreover, you will never have honest media when it’s bought-and-paid-for – in any country.
As always, I wish the best for all people.
/Bill