Vamos a Cuba book Controversy

Update 7/11: In brief, attempted "book bannings'" identical to the one in Miami-Dade, have occurred at a rate of over one a day for the last two and half decades, from sea to shining sea. In most of these incidents the ACLU and the mainstream media have been conspicuously mum. An interesting argument for all those defending the ACLU stance.

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There is some news regarding the recent ACLU suit regarding the banned book Vamos a Cuba in Miami-Dade county public schools.

A federal judge has decided that the book will remain in schools for now.

Cuban American Pundits, who calls the ban censhorship, published the contents of the book back in April.

My opinion regarding this stands. I don't think this is censorship; people can still go to a store and read it, they can still own it in their homes, no one will be prosecuted for willlingly giving this to their children. However, the school system should not sponsor a pack of lies. What lies? Below my light rebuttal to the content of the book:

Page 26: Celebrations Picture of several black women and children in carnaval attire. Cuba's biggest celebration is called Carnival. It is held on July 26. People dance and sing at this festival. Since when did la toma de moncada become el carnaval?

Page 23: Older boy at chalkboard doing math equations. In school, children learn math, reading, and history. All schoolchildren do some kind of work during their school day. Some children work in gardens. Older children may work in factories. Gardens? we are calling labor camps gardens? History? The history according to Fidel which is very different from true world history.

Page 18: Transportation Picture of antique American car. There are not many cars in Cuba. In the cities, some people drive old cars from the United States. Most Cubans travel by bus. Because they have no way to acquire a truck or a car - no money. They travel by bus because they have to, not because they want to.

Page 12: Food Picture of a metal tray with food in the various compartments. Rice, banana, yucca. White rice is the most common food in Cuba. Sometimes it is mixed with black beans. Chicken with rice is popular, too. Excuse me? What the heck? People eat white rice because it's most accesible, and can get nothing else. This makes it sound like all that cubans eat is plain white rice, and they like it too.

Page 11: Picture of several bohios. Most homes in the country are simple. Some are made of wood from palm trees.The have roofs of palm leaves or grasses. Again because of lack of resources. They are not simple, they are poor. There is a difference.

Page 5: Picture of a small plaza in Cuba taken from a balcony (probably Old Havana) Below are some tables set up with handicrafts. Several people are walking with bicycles. People in Cuba eat, work and go to school like you do. Life in Cuba is also unique. No they don't. Although they do have it right when they say life in Cuba is unique.

Tags: Cuba, Fidel Castro, Vamos a Cuba, Censorship

Vamos a Cuba book banned

Cubans have mixed feelings about banning the book, taking on the ACLU and giving the book more publicity than it would've ever had while at the same time furthering the image of the intransigent dictatorial Cuban.

Others are jumping for joy and feel a wrong was somewhat righted, since the Vamos a Cuba book presents inaccuracies of life, politics and education in Cuba - like the 26th of July being a Carnival instead of the celebration of the revolutions <i>Toma de Moncada</i>.

I am somewhat in the middle, and try to think what I would do if I had a child in this situation.  At the same time I think what would African-Americans do if a book came out about <i>Vamos a Sud Africa</i>, Let's visit South Africa, and the book somehow failed to mention apartheid.  Or what would Jews do if a book came out into schools about Let's visit Palestine, and the book spoke of how Israel is the monster and Palestinian the victims; or neglected to mention the indoctrination of Palestinian children.

In all three situations these books would be in the library, and could be used to complete homework assigned by the teachers.  While I'm all for free speech, and no to book banning, I would certainly would not want my child to be exposed to the wrong information; to be misled or to be deceived.  And that is what is at heart here, this book is a deception.

If the book depicted truthfully what live is like for kids in Cuba, and how this is the communist youth uniform and not boy scouts, I wouldn't have a problem with it.  However, lies and deception in a book geared to children aged 5-7 years old I cannot take.

Democrats are in uproar because Bush lied; Bush deceived us; yet we can sit here and allow a foreign government, enemy of the United States of America to lie to our children while our tax dollars fund the bill.  I will have none of it.

Tags: Cuba, Miami, ACLU, Vamos a Cuba, Book, Miami-Dade, Fidel Castro

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Feeling Cuban....

As I walk out of the gate, Spanish humming behind me, the smell of fresh brewed Cuban coffee slaps me in the face. God I missed that smell. I breathe deeply, taking the aroma to my lungs, to my blood. All of a sudden I have this urge, this craving to have a cafecito.

As I get into Mami's car, a familiar voice greets me - Armando Pérez Roura and Radio Mambí, discussing the whole Vamos a Cuba book controversy, and how the superintendent of the schools had said that the pioneros cubanos were like boy scouts. I almost had a heart attack. They also mentioned a documentary, premiering today called Plantados - filmed in secret with a small digital camara at La Cabaña and Isla de Pinos. Today at 7pm at Casa Bacardí. I cannot wait to hear the reviews.

Mami mentions she wants to go see The Lost City, if I'm not too tired. Not at all, I tell her, I've been dying to see it too. So we are going tonight, and I will comment on it tomorrow.

We arrive at Havana Miami where I promptly order the soup of the day potaje de colorados, with the traditional pechuga de pollo a la plancha con tostones. The potaje, was to die for. I cannot remember when was the last time I had it; the calabaza melted in your mouth and the trozos de chorizo y jamón were exquisite. But the tostones ...... oh man, those tostones done with rodillo, huge, well seasoned, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside tostones.

Lunch is over and now it is time. The moment I've been waiting for since I got off the plane, I ordered a cortadito. Nice, brothy and color cartucho.

"¿Tiene azúcar?," I asked. "La del café," answered el mesero. Wonderful! But after so many months of Dunkin Donuts coffee, would it taste as good as I remember? I take a buchito through the espumita. Nice, boiling hot Cuban coffee - bitter and sweet at the same time; with a nice kick. Que rico.

Welcome to Miami.

Tags: Cuba, Miami, Democracy, Political Prisoners, Miami

Banning Harry Potter

The media was in an uproar when the Cuban exile community in Miami requested a ban on the controversial book "Vamos a Cuba". Even the ACLU got involved.

But have you heard about this?