Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Nueva cara del voto hispano en Florida... and my response...

Article here....

I kinda like this article... I appreciate the way it describes the 'routine' for politicians to denounce Castro, promising to 'free' it, and what not...sort of like house chores... I also appreciate the new piece of how there are more Latino Democrats registered in FL than Republican. I've read, years ago, how the demographic shift is changing the views of politics in FL... so I'm excited to see people are paying attention to it... better late than never I guess.

So, to cause controversy and to see what people think, I'll go ahead and tell you what my view is. I think its everyone's right to think how they want to think, to follow any particular context or paradigm or ideology you please (with the understanding that you will face resistance disagreement, etc.) But what I haven't appreciated in my many conversations with others about Castro/Cuba... is the complete dichotomy of the conversations, in particular with those who are against Castro... its a 'believe me, or you're full of shit" black/white argument that goes no where. Maybe I haven't met the right person to talk to about this...

I understand you hurt, I understand that you are passionate, but many of times... the Anti-Castro crowd comes at me like fascists... forcing me to agree, putting me down if I don't see it 100% of the way they do. It no longer becomes a conversation, but a lecture, a mandate, a one-sided ideological imposition that is being shoveled down my throat.

This reminds me of an incident when I was working at a Latino cultural center in Philly, and a student group wanted to put on a "Che" event and talk about how he has done good for poor folks. So, I get a call from an alum who goes on to say "I don't agree with you putting this event on, this is so one-sided... I can't believe it!! This is wrong to put on, and I think you shouldn't include this in your calendar" (he admits to me he is Cuban). My response to him was, "As a center for education, I value the voices and viewpoints of others... despite the fact they differ from my own. And, if you feel that another voice is needed in this larger discourse, I encourage you to come to me with an event that shares your viewpoint, and I'll be happy to put the event on the calendar."

Did I get a call back... nope

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