In the last year we have witnessed dramatic changes in the Middle East and north Africa. There was vast media coverage detailing the brutality of oppressors like Assad in Syria. Yet very little has been said about the escalation of violence against Cuba's internal opposition, a peaceful group that is being attacked by Castro tyrants and their agents of terror, as we can see in these photos in this poster right next to me, and they're operating just 90 miles from U.S. shores. But there is an opportunity to correct this wrong, to join forces and shed light on the systematic abuses against freedom-loving Cubans, and to call on Pope Benedict XVI as he prepares to visit the island gulag to publicly support the aspirations of the enslaved Cuban people to exercise their God-given rights. The Cuban dictatorship has ramped up its use of short-term detentions in order to intimidate and silence the voices of these brave Cubans; and you see here the Ladies in White, and I will explain who they are. They're standing up against tyranny and oppression. The Castro regime has continued its assault on fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of religion and the freedom of speech. The Cuban people are reminded daily that no dissent is ever allowed as they live under constant threat and surveillance by Cuban state security forces.…
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