Rae Oliver Davis: “Cuba is a country that has a people with a diverse culture, a rich heritage, a people who came as pioneers, people who…”

“Cuba is a country that has a people with a diverse culture, a rich heritage, a people who came as pioneers, people who came and sought their freedom and built a future. This rich and diverse history was suppressed 46 years ago under a dark veil of Communist rejection of all freedom, of rights, of dignity and liberty of the individual. I think it is important that this resolution pass, and I rise today in its support. I cannot stress enough how important it is that human rights and human dignity be afforded to the citizens of Cuba who live in oppression under a brutal, tyrannical dictator who cares more for his own power and the advancement of his family and his cronies than his citizens who are starving and are neglected of the basic rights and privileges and necessities that we take for granted in this country. He stands against those things that we represent, and my family has seen that firsthand. My wife Pat has helped many Cuban families who have made literally the pilgrimage to freedom, in a heartbreaking decision to leave their home country, to leave all that they love, lose all of their worldly possessions, except for their dignity, their self respect, their faith and, ultimately, maintaining cohesiveness in their family, to come seek a new life here, awaiting that day when they may return to their land and live in freedom. Unfortunately, some in the international community see fit to recognize Fidel Castro as a power with whom to negotiate and placate.…”