3rd February 2012
TODAY'S BEST BET
Castro sorry for persecution of gays in Cuba
- Fidel Castro
The latest country to talk about legalizing same-sex marriage will not become the new gay and lesbian travel destination anytime soon.
What is the latest country to talk about legalizing same-sex unions? That bastion of civil rights — Cuba.
Fidel Castro has been out of the spotlight for several years but recently made some public appearances. Asked about gays and lesbians, he apologized for past mistreatment.
In an interview on Radio Cadena Agramonte, Castro took responsibility for persecution of gays and lesbians after the 1959 revolution.
“Five decades ago, because of homophobia, homosexuals were marginalized in Cuba and many were sent to agricultural or military labor camps, accused of being “counterrevolutionaries,” he said. “We had so many terrible problems, problems of life or death, you know, you do not pay enough attention.”
He said personally he had no prejudice and that many of his oldest friends were gay and lesbian.
But he said, “No, if someone is responsible (for the discrimination) it is me.”
Homosexuality was decriminalized in Cuba in the 1990s, and sex-reassignment surgery for transgenders began being performed free in 2008.
The slogan for the last World Day Against Homophobia in Cuba was “La homosexualidad no es un peligro, la homofobia sí” or “Homosexuality is not a threat, homophobia is.”
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Mauvaise Conduite or Improper Conduct is the title of a 1984 documentary film directed by Néstor Almendros and Orlando Jiménez Leal. The documentary interviews Cuban refugees to explore the Cuban government’s imprisonment of homosexuals, political dissidents, and Jehovah’s Witnesses into concentration camps under its policy of Military Units to Aid Protection. The documentary was produced with the support of French television Antenne 2 and won the Best Documentary Audience Award at the 1984 San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Improper_Conduct
Conducta Impropria – Improper Conduct (Part 5)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0VT4cSm4n8&feature=related
This is some shocking news mr. David Taffett. Why isn’t Ms. Katie, Diane, or Brian telling us about this..or at least Rachel? Can we vacation in Cuba now? I want to go to the land of pristine beaches and uncut penis.
Sorry, Mr. Jett. Travel to Cuba is still illegal for Americans who do not have family there. However, if you’d really like to go, You can fly from DFW to Cancun and from Cancun to Havana. Ask for your visa to be stamped on a loose piece of paper than can be removed from your passport before return so American customs does not know that you traveled there. Also, it would be wise to not update your facebook while in Cuba or you might face arrest upon return.
But sure, go, have a good time and get married there.
This is unexpected news because my life long perception of Castro is very negative. Please write more about this in a future article.