BY ERNIE MAILHOT AND RACHELE FRUIT
MIAMI - For the first time in the 38-year history of the Cuban revolution, high level representatives of the Cuban government spoke before a broad meeting in this city. A crowd of over 200 people, most of them Cuban-American, packed the meeting room at the Miami Airport Inn March 22. The next morning's El Nuevo Herald, the main Spanish- language paper here, had the meeting as its feature story, with the front page headline "Meeting of Cubans is unprecedented."

The event was sponsored by the Miami Coalition to End the U.S. Embargo of Cuba, and chaired by Rollande Girard from the Coalition and Andrés Gómez, of the Antonio Maceo Brigade, a Cuban-American group that supports the Cuban revolution.

The overwhelming majority of participants enthusiastically applauded Félix Wilson, Second Secretary at the Cuban Interests Section in Washington, D.C. He was joined in the program by Luis Molina, Third Secretary at the Interests Section, and Rev. Raúl Suárez, a Baptist pastor from Cuba who is a deputy in Cuba's National Assembly of People's Power.

Referring to the law tightening the U.S. economic blockade of Cuba, Wilson explained, "We are totally against the Helms-Burton law, but we know many of our friends think the best way to resolve this question is to fight for the elimination of titles Three and Four. All the titles of the law are bad. For us, the law is completely against the sovereignty and independence of the Cuban people."

Wilson explained the difficult economic situation in Cuba precipitated by the collapse of favorable trade relations with the Soviet Union. Despite this, he said, Cuba continues to defend its gains. As examples he pointed to the 46 universities in Cuba today as opposed to three before the revolution and the fact that prior to the revolution a large percentage of the population was illiterate, while today everyone has the minimum of a 10th grade education.

Several questions during an hour-long discussion focused on a trip to Cuba organized by the Alliance of Workers of the Cuban Community (ATC) with people who recently left the island on rafts. Katya Lazo asked if this meant a change in Cuba's policy that someone who left Cuba illegally cannot return for five years. She explained that many "rafters" are young people who oppose the U.S. embargo. Molina answered that these requests are being taken up on a case by case basis.

Broad participation in meeting
Gómez recognized some of the groups and prominent individuals in the audience, pointing out that the meeting brought people "with different points of view together in a common effort against the aggression and genocide of the United States government against the Cuban people." Among them were the ATC, Cambio Cubano, Afro-Cuban Cultural Exchange, Cuba Vive from Tampa, the magazine Contrapunto, Jewish Solidarity, the Cuban American Defense League, the Socialist Workers Party, the Jewish Cultural Center, the Cuban Committee for Democracy, and the Young Socialists. The Haitian rights group Veye Yo also sent a representative.

Some of the prominent individuals included Cuban- American journalist Lázaro Farinas, Cuban art consultant Carlos Luis, civil libertarian Jim Mullins, and Eloy Gutiérrez Menoyo, who came to the meeting with about 20 members of his group Cambio Cubano. Gutiérrez is a former leader of a guerrilla group that fought the Batista dictatorship but did not collaborate with the rebel army of Fidel Castro. Having left Cuba after the revolution triumphed, he returned with a counterrevolutionary armed band and was captured. He spent 22 years in Cuban jails. Back in the United States, he has recently come out for some form of negotiations with the Cuban government. Little applause, if any, came from the Cambio Cubano section and they left the event early.

Originally planned as an invitation-only meeting, the speaking engagement with Wilson became widely known. On the day before the event, the Miami police attempted to sabotage it. Miami Airport Inn management reported that they were visited that morning by undercover cops who falsely told them the meeting was sponsored by the Antonio Maceo Brigade. The cops told the hotel manager and other employees that violence was likely and that they would be more than happy to help them end the meeting if the hotel staff decided to do so.

Event sparks heated debate
After this visit someone claiming to be a worker at the hotel called the Spanish-language radio station WCMQ with details of the meeting. Right-wingers on several radio stations soon began threatening the event.

During the meeting police cars were outside and four undercover cops stood by. The event's organizers secured the meeting room as well as outside the hotel. They confronted only one right-winger, who timidly said he wanted to enter the "communist meeting."

For days after the Wilson speaking engagement, El Nuevo Herald covered it on the front-page and right-wing radio stations screeched at an even higher pitch than normal. Commentators and right-wing callers on Radio Mambi, WQBA, and WCMQ said the meeting was a provocation. Other callers denounced the rightists' attacks on free speech. Two talk show hosts on Union Radio and most of their callers supported the event.

Three days after the Cuban diplomats spoke here, the ultra-rightist Cuban Patriotic Front held a planning meeting where they decided to send a delegation to Washington to demand of U.S. government officials that Wilson and other Cuban government representatives not be allowed to travel to Miami.

Rightists in the Miami Cuban-American community have recently suffered setbacks. The three main Spanish-language stations that put attacking Cuba at the center of their programming, have all lost significant listenership in the past year. Rightists here claimed victory when Andy Montañez, a Puerto Rican singer, was canceled from Miami's Calle Ocho festival for having hugged Cuban singer Silvio Rodríguez. After Latino groups and individuals, including some Cuban-Americans, denounced the cancellation and some Puerto Ricans threatened protests, no one admitted to having canceled the contract.

The same week the Cuban diplomats spoke in Miami, FM Radio Tropical came under attack. With its ratings dropping, the station decided to play the music of groups presently in Cuba, including the internationally acclaimed dance group Los Van Van. When rightists complained, a poll of listeners showed they favored playing the Cuban groups by a more than 2-1 ratio. After a campaign by another Spanish-language station, bomb threats, and the pullout of several advertisers, Radio Tropical caved in and stopped the Cuban music. Within days Union Radio announced it would begin a show on March 31 that would feature this same music.

Commenting on the speaking engagement for the Cuban representatives, Oscar Ochotorena, a Cuban-American, stated, "From the point of view of those who are against Helms-Burton and who want to advance it's a very, very important step. I would even say very far-reaching." His view was echoed by many who participated in the event.

Girard, from the Miami Coalition Against the U.S. Embargo of Cuba, said, "This has set a precedent we can build on. The right-wing here is a little weaker today because of this event, but we should always remember that it's Washington that is organizing the attacks on the Cuban revolution. We need more and bigger meetings like this to get out the truth about Cuba and the criminal U.S. economic blockade of the island."

A special announcement was made at the March 22 meeting about the upcoming World Festival of Youth and Students in Cuba, and some people signed up to attend. Several hundred dollars was raised to help youth from the Miami area get to the event.

While in Miami, Wilson also spoke informally with about 100 people at the headquarters of the ATC and gave some press interviews.

Ernie Mailhot is a member of Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees Local 694B. Rachele Fruit is a member of the International Association of Machinists Local 1126.  
 
 
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