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Gay Cubans
Continued from Page 13
as well as conviction record when determining
eligibility for release.
The Department of Justice considers all of
the detainees to be "dangerous and unfit to
enter society." According to Dr. Valerio, that is
a misleading statement He estimates that of
the 7,000 people either currently detained or
serving sentences prior to detainment by the
INS, "only ten or twelve are infer violent
crimes such as murder and rape, perhaps as
many as fifty are in for hard drug crimes. The
rest are being detained for minor offenses. ...I
personally know of a man who has been in the
prison system for six years because he urinated
in a parking lot, and was anested for public
exposure and indecency,"
New Allegations
When the Cubans detained at the Atlanta
Federal Penitentiary and the Oakland,
Louisiana Federal Alien Detention Center
rioted in December of 1987, new charges of
large numbers of gay men being detained
solely on the basis of their sexual preference
began to emerge. The most damning evidence
was provided by Frank Harris, an Anglo
prisoner released by the Cubans during the
siege. John Hubert reported Harris' allegations
in his syndicated column. According to Harris,
as many as fifty percent of the Cuban detainees
are gay, and they staged mock fights in order to
distract guards while other detainees slipped
into the crawl-space above the paneled ceiling
in order to have sex.
All sources contacted in regard to questions
of the number of homosexuals being detained
varied widely in their estimates. Dudecawas
unsure of exact figures, but doubted the quoted
figure of fifty percent. After making the
distinction between same-gender sex instigated
by close confinement for long periods of time,
and true sexual orientation, she felt that the
number of gay Cubans would closer approach
the standard figure of ten percent
When asked whether or not the Cubans were
being detained for their sexual orientation,
Dudeca admitted "It's an issue, but not usually
the stated reason for detainment"
When contacted for comment Tom
Bomemann of the National Institute of Mental
Health's Refugee Mental Health Program
stated, "The federal government does not keep
statistics on the number of homosexuals in the
Cuban detainee population." Continuing, he
said that a detainee's sexual orientation has "no
bearing on any decision regarding their status
in the United States."
According to Dudeca, however, while the
detainee's sexuality might not be listed as the
official reason, it is always a consideration.
She recently represented a man before the INS
panel which decides who should and should not
be released. The oily crime the man was
convicted of was misdemeanor sodomy in
California. His request for release was denied.
The official reason for denial was "no entrance
papers." None of the Marielito Cubans had
entry papers to the United States.
When asked to rate the chances of a gay
man among the detained Cuban population
being released, Dudeca sarcastically replied, "If
you're not a middle-aged white man who goes
to church every Sunday, then you don't fit in
our society."
For this reason, many of the people who
work with the Cuban detainees caution their
clients to "pass as straight," and take great pains
not to bring up any incidents that might betray
a person's true sexuality to the review panels.
The Marielito Cubans have now been split
up into groups of less than 200, and shipped all
over the country to prevent the occurence of
further rioting. After three months of inaction,
the INS has begun the process of reviewing all
cases of current detainees. The Marielitos now
live in a state of constant lockdown, a criminal
justice term for no contact with other people,
and limited, heavily supervised recreation time.
They spend most of their time in their cells.
They come to their hearings in handcuffs and
ankle-chains.
Human rights advocates are unsure of the
Department of Justice's new found
committment to integrating as many of the
Marielito Cubans into American society as
possible.
Even with the intervention of concerned
American citizens, it is unlikely that a tree
statistical picture will ever be drawn of the gay
Cubans among the Mariel refugees. Their
distrust of anyone resembling an authoritative
government figure will distort whatever figures
are reported, as they jockey positions
attempting to get the "right” answer which will
enable them to stay in the United States.
Sexual freedom is a luxury compared to
freedom of thought
It is reasonable to assume that at least ten
percent of the Marielitos are gay and lesbian. It
would be a rare historical irony if more escaped
with their oppressor's help.
In response to the charges leveled by Harris,
Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) is asking
that anyone knowing of gay men being held
among the detainees contact his office. The
address is Longworth House Office Building,
Washington, D.C., 20000.
-Chris Duncan
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