Rubio Signals Trump To Reinstate State Sponsor of Terrorism Designation on Cuba
Removing the State Sponsor of Terrorism designation should have happened a long time ago as Trump will likely reinstate it immediately
On Tuesday, President Joe Biden sent the House of Representatives a communication regarding Cuba. The message, titled “Certification of Rescission of Cuba’s Designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism,” was meant to inform Congress of the president’s decision to remove Cuba from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism.
While most would agree that former President Donald Trump should never have listed Cuba as a state sponsor of terror, Cuba is likely to be back on the list in a few days when Trump takes office, and Biden, like the rest of us, knows that. Considering the bipartisan support Marco Rubio has, we can presume he will be confirmed as Secretary of State. This greatly increases the likelihood of more oppressive policies toward Cuba.
During the Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Rubio seemed poised to continue the oppression of Cuba. It’s worth noting that he made no mention of U.S. sanctions crippling and starving the Cuban people. Rubio also employed some of the propaganda used to justify the oppression of Cuba in a later question-and-answer session with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
The bipartisan nature of foreign policy for more than 60 years toward the island nation guarantees it. As news broke of the Biden administration broke, it came as no surprise that anti-Cuban propaganda flooded social media. One of the most common arguments claims Cuba isn’t a politically pluralist society – a claim that assumes people all think the same way.
The truth is that pluralist thought is common in every society. Cuba, like the U.S., has far-right, conservatives, racists, bigots, and leftists. The difference is they are a communist country and the U.S. is a capitalist nation. Does that mean that the U.S. isn’t a pluralist society because communists aren’t allowed to seek political office? Of course not.
Cuba has 470 seats in its National Assembly. Its bicameral legislature has trans members, gay members, and members of all races elected by the communities in which they live. There are members from all walks of life with different ideals. Many were against trans rights a few years ago, some are anti-LGBTQ, and others believe in a more inclusive society. While the law guaranteeing trans rights passed, there was no shortage of pushback.
Aside from the fact that Cuba is ahead of the U.S. in terms of social equity, the nation is not so different from its neighbor to the North as it is made up of humans and we all know how diverse human nature is. People are people. Some of them suck, some of them are pretty damn cool and to suggest Cuban society is any different simply because they chose to govern themselves differently is blatantly ignorant.
We can only hope U.S. citizens start waking up to the reality that they are propagandized.
As a Cuban American, I’ve covered Cuba extensively for decades. Some of my best work can be found at Latino Rebels and on this platform. For example, an in-depth look into Cuba’s elections will highlight everything wrong with ours. I’ve also discussed the complexities of the discussion about Cuba after the July 11, 2021 protests and interviewed the wife of a jailed journalist whose release I’ve been advocating for since his arrest.
In the end, no, the Cuban communist party doesn’t pick candidates like the capitalist party in the U.S. does. In fact, not all lawmakers in Cuba are in the communist party. Some represent more capitalist ideologies. Candidates are selected by members of their communities through a series of votes and campaigns are run through advocating for themselves not outrageous funding.
The U.S. news media doesn’t talk about that.
I’m a freelance journalist. Find my work at Latino Rebels, Unicorn Riot, The Antagonist Magazine, and more. I’m also on TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Mastodon, and Threads. To support my work, become a paid subscriber or donate via Venmo, PayPal, or CashApp.
The U.S. just wants a plantation for cheap sugar and tourists and Haiti and the Dominican Republic are the examples. “People are people. Some of them suck, some of them are pretty damn cool and to suggest Cuban society is any different simply because they chose to govern themselves differently is blatantly ignorant.”
It's crazy to have such manichean thinking in my opinion, I just don't get why people don't just accept that we are all pretty much the same either way you go (good and bad) ... oh, yeah, that's right, the dehumanization makes this dichotomous thinking possible!