4th of July Reflections on Two Revolutions

Having been born in Philadelphia, some of my fondest memories are of the field trips I took to places like Independence Hall. This was well before I even knew what Cuba was and that I was a Cuban-American. I learned about the American Revolution, about George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and my favorite patriot, Benjamin Franklin. It’s a curious thing, these “Revolutions”. Americans did not really begin to commemorate our Revolution until 50 years had passed. We look at the American Revolution as a period in time, period out of which a new nation was born. Our Revolution was successful and people tried to return to a normal life.

Contrast that to the Cuban Revolution. When Castro and his cronies talk about the Revolution they speak not of the battles against Batista during the insurgency between 1952 and 1958. They speak of the Revolution as something that took place after the insurgency won, something that’s taking place today. You see Castro needs enemies to keep his regime in power. If you’re fighting for the Revolution every day, then you can’t question the government’s policies. Any criticism is seen as anti-revolutionary and punishable by jail or worse. That’s why Cuban society is so militarized. I’ve written here about the unbelievable exhaustion that most Cubans suffer from. It’s been 46 years of “Revolution” and no return to normal life.

On this day, our Independence Day, let us keep the Cuban people in our prayers, that this nightmare of a Revolution end quickly.