Cuban Blogger Beaten by Regime Thugs — This Time, the World Notices
The international press finally reports on Castro's violence. Perhaps because the victim is a darling of the left as well as the right.
Yoani Sanchez is a blogger who persists in offending Cuba’s dictatorial masters by continuing to think freely. For this reason, Time called her one of the most influential people in the world. I call her the most dangerous woman in Cuba, because the gravest offense a Cuban resident can commit is to think and act independently.
On November 6, Sanchez — who writes about the absurdity of life in the “workers’ paradise” at a blog called Generation Y — was detained and beaten in Havana while on her way to an anti-violence demonstration, of all things.
The problem for Cuba’s bloodthirsty dictator, Raul Castro, is that only government-sponsored demonstrations are permitted in Cuba, and the only government one is allowed to protest is that of the United States. So the regime’s thugs decided that Yoani was getting a little big for her britches (figuratively, because the most dangerous woman in Cuba probably weighs 90 lbs. soaking wet).
Such conduct by the Castro regime is hardly anything new — this is a Stalinist totalitarian regime that has been abusing human rights for more than 50 years. What is new is the coverage that Sanchez and her beating, and those of her blogger colleagues, have gotten from the international media. In the past, media outlets — operating under the terms of a Faustian bargain — have been content to see no evil, hear no evil, and, most importantly, speak of no evil when it comes to the Castro brothers and their corrupt regime.
But Sanchez is an interesting and special case.
Page 1 of 2 Next ->
Henry Louis Gomez is Cuban-American and blogs at BabaluBlog.com.
 |
 |
 |
Podcasts |  PJM Home |
Pajamas Media appreciates your comments that abide by the following guidelines:
1. Avoid profanities or foul language unless it is contained in a necessary quote or is relevant to the comment.
2. Stay on topic.
3. Disagree, but avoid ad hominem attacks.
4. Threats are treated seriously and reported to law enforcement.
5. Spam and advertising are not permitted in the comments area.
The clause regarding "hate speech" has been deleted because readers criticized it as being too loosely defined. We agreed.
These guidelines are very general and cannot cover every possible situation. Please don't assume that Pajamas Media management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment. We reserve the right to filter or delete comments or to deny posting privileges entirely at our discretion. If you feel your comment was filtered inappropriately, please email us at story@pajamasmedia.com.
10 Comments
1. Chileno:Viva Yoani Sanchez! A courageous young woman unafraid to speak the truth! But just like the courageous Iranian protestors, also clamoring for freedom and justice in their land, the plight of Yoani is ignored by our government, which instead favors “dialogue” with ruthless regimes in the hopes of somehow advancing “peace and understanding” among natiions… We end up sacrificing those who should be our friends in order to appease our enemies, leaving us with fewer friends and bolder enemies.
Nov 18, 2009 - 5:01 am 2. Jerry:Yoani! What about Pastor Manning! http://www.israpundit.com/2008/
Pastor Manning Arrested
It’s about the birth certificate and comments made by Rev. Manning about taking Obama down , trying him and hanging him for treason.
pastor manning on obama
ROBERT | MySpace Video
Nov 18, 2009 - 7:12 am 3. Eowyn:Posted by Ted Belman @ 7:02 am ET | Plink | Trackback | 1 Comment » | 127 views
Ah, yes. We can expect deafening silence on the left side of the aisle when it comes to real dissent.
The “glorious workers’ paradise” in Cuba has only been maintained first by the decaying Soviet Union, but more substantially by the largesse of expatriates in the United States sending cash back to family on the island. (Who, it may be said, were free here to earn as much money as their hard work and creativity could achieve. And they have.)
And, thanks to the First Amendment to the Constitution, the glaring truth is out there for all the world to see — or ignore. (Cue regrettable lapse into ad hominem: Mikey Moore is such a disgusting, lying pig. Sorry.)
My Spanish teacher in the 10th grade was one Dr. Raul Nodarse. He was quite the unusual personality. He and his buddies fought at the Bay of Pigs, and only squeaked out at the last minute when the air support evaporated. He taught comparitive literature at a university in Havana, but took up a gun once he saw what was at stake in 1959.
He wore the most outrageously bad toupee. He brought a saber to class that had belonged to his grandfather; and, should a student be so unwise as to give a wrong answer, he would leap up on his/her desk brandishing his blade, shouting out, “Less 1,000 points!” (You could earn, or lose, bonus points on any given day. Many a student achieved stellar marks — AND a good grasp of Spanish — thusly.) He rode a full-dresser Harley-Davidson motorcycle.
The bike — and his passionate nature — were his undoing. He crashed into a tractor-trailer one morning and did not survive.
Apologies for the digression … I guess my point is that many, many Cubans did, and do, care passionately about their freedoms. Enough to attempt to speak about it despite threats of death, or even death itself.
Long live Yoanni. And rest in peace, Doc.
Nov 18, 2009 - 10:46 am 4. Rich Vail:I think it’s very important to report on human rights abuses in Cuba.
One to think very seriously about, right now…is when is the MSM going to report on thugs, in So Cal seriously beating a couple of people who were merely protesting government seizure of health care? By SEIU thugs no less. Oh, I forgot, they support Obama, so it’s ok that they beat up an old man. Um…that’s called fascism as I recall. The National Socialist Workers Party wasn’t a conservative movement…just look at the name.
Nov 18, 2009 - 10:57 am 5. Fantom:Only in Obama’s America would it be worse.
Don’t believe me.. check out Lou Dobbs firing .. better not say a bad thing about Barrack Husein Obama… mmmnn mmm mm.
Nov 18, 2009 - 10:59 am 6. Tish:Rich – do you have a link you can provide? Not surprisingly, I haven’t heard a thing about it.
Nov 18, 2009 - 11:52 am 7. joe buzz:Tish, of course you havent try:
Here
or
Here
Nov 18, 2009 - 12:17 pm 8. pelaut:Raul, a brutal dictator?
The truth about Cuba’s healthcare system? (I’ve used it — yuk!)
After 50 years it all gets tiring, doesn’t it?
Sanchez sounds like Armando Balladarez before imprisonment — or the any of the other thousands of Ché-like teenagers avoiding their responsibility to be in school by being in the hills in 1958. God bless her and help her.
BUT, the Cubans s$$t on their own plate and deserve whatever happened to them when they sat down to dinner, just like the Americans now are doing in their country, and you won’t cry a tear for them.
Nov 19, 2009 - 4:45 am 9. deguello:PELAUT:Yoanni IS inspiring. Her defiance of marxist thugs needs to be publicized as much as possible, to galvanize resistance to our own Castro wannabe! BTW: the resemblance of the Castro goons to ACORN, and the black panther voting booth intimidators,underscores the danger we Americans are in.
Nov 19, 2009 - 3:03 pm 10. Tournefort:Members of the Congressional Black Congress who visited Castro in Cuba raved about how wonderful he and Cuba are.
I’m wondering when we will hear from the CBC on this issue?
Nov 19, 2009 - 8:13 pm