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Spelman Spotlight, Atlanta, GA
February 9,1993
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Is Democratic Change In Store For Cuba ?
By Kelli Moore
Cuba is still in isolation. Former
President Bush recently cracked down
on this Caribbean island by enforcing
stricter policies on a 30-year- old
economic embargo against Cuba.
This embargo bans foreign
subsidiaries of American companies
from doing business with Cuba. It
further prevents ships that have traded
with Cuba from visiting U.S. ports for
up to six months after the port stop.
This embargo is called the Cuban
Democracy Act of 1992.
Its intent is to put Cuba into an
economic crisis in order to weaken
Castro’s government. The New York
Times quotes President Clinton as
stating that this embargo is " a big
opportunity to put the hammer down on
Fidel Castro and Cuba."
Many worry because Fidel Castro
has grown into a figure that is larger
than life. Through Castro’s reign a
dichotomy has formed surrounding him
and his government.
There are citizens who abhor Castro
and who are afraid to dispraise the
government on the street or even in
their own homes.
In fact, it is common to find citizens
using sign language to communicate
information about Castro and other
military officials.
The young people of Cuba dare to
speak loudly, but even then, there is a
limited sense of attaining freedom that
is perceived by this segment of the
society.
Citizens say that they are tired of
being watched, noting the unspoken,
but apparent tension that prevails.
"Cubans say that fist fights break
out for no good reason in the long lines
of people waiting for buses or
newspapers..," according to The New
York Times "Artists cross the unspoken
but understood bounds of criticism,
although they know it will mean they
will have trouble obtaining materials or
exhibitions or concert dates."
Despite this oppression many
citizens of Cuba, who remember the
poverty that prevailed the island before
Castro’s take over, are satisfied with the
government that exists now. Castro has
created employment and social security
and some members of the younger
generation benefit from the programs as
well.
One 21-year-old woman, Nichua, had
trouble getting her asthma medicine. She
said that it was the first time she had
had trouble getting the medicine since
childhood. Some may imply that the
system has failed her, but Nichua says
that the system did not fail her. In fact,
she stands staunchly in favor of the
government.
Nichua, the daughter of peasants, is
a chemical engineer thanks to the state
schools.
"In what other country would they
do that for you?" she said.
There are strong opinions on both
sides of the spectrum. It is clear to see
that Castro has those who will support
him to the end, and those who will plot
his end.
But the question is, will there be a
change in leadership and political
development? Is democracy in the future
for Cuba? If so, when?
Will democracy help or hinder the
inhabitants of Cuba? The effects of the
Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 should
bring these issues to light.
Thurgood Marshall: The Legend
1909-1993
By Riche Daniel
Sister to Sister Editor
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said,
"See how the masses of men worry
themselves into nameless graves, while
here and there a great unselfish soul
forgets himself into mortality."
Thurgood Marshall proved himself
to be that great unselfish soul.
His life was a model of unselfish
humanitarian accomplishments as he
insisted that the law be used to create
equality not only for black people but
for women, criminals and indigents.
Marshall died Sunday Jan. 17 at the
age of 84.
"America has lost a national herb, a
man who will be remembered as one of
the legends of the 20th century," said
Ralph Neas of the Leadership
Conference on Civil Rights in the Jan.
25, issue of USA Today.
Marshall is best known for arguing
the Brown versus Board of Education
(1954) case while heading the NAACP
Legal Defense and Educational Fund.
He was appointed as the first African
American Supreme Court Justice in
1967.
But he was much more than a civil
rights lawyer.
He kept issues concerning privacy,
rights of criminal defendants, death row
inmates, minorities, and the press close
to his heart.
"People want to think of Thurgood
Marshall as a civil rights lawyer," said
Carl Rowan, his friend and biographer,
"He was in fact a human rights
lawyer."
Marshall did not succeed in
changing everything he thought was
wrong with the law. He continued to
fight for the defeat of the death
penalty. He also fought for the
government to finance abortions for
indigent women. And he fought to
help affirmative action stand the test of
time.
According to the Atlanta Journal
and The Atlanta Constitution Jan. 25
issue, as the court’s conservative
appointments titled the court’s
philosophy to the right, Marshall grew
frustrated but he did not give up.
"He was a giant in the quest for
human rights and equal opportunity in
the whole history of our country," said
President Clinton.
Carl Rowan said Thurgood
Marshall’s quest for justice was driven
by the violence and racism of his youth.
But Marshall’s interest in civil rights
did not sprout until he went to law
school at Howard University.
His early cases included a change in
the District of Columbia’s code that
prohibited blacks from voting and a case
forcing the University of Maryland law
school to desegregate.
Marshall went to Houston in 1937 to
work for the NAACP, President
Kennedy made him a federal appeals
court judge, and President Johnson made
him a U.S. solicitor general in 1965,
then elevated him to the Supreme Court
in 1967.
Marshall argued 32 cases before the
Supreme Court winning 29.
Included in his triumphs are ending
the use of racially restrictive covenants
to keep blacks from buying houses and
being sent by President Truman to
review the treatment of black soldiers
under Gen. Douglas MacArthur.
By 1959, Marshall was known
internationally as "Mr. Civil Rights" and
was compared to people like Martin
Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X
although his contributions were related
through the use of the law and the
courts.
On one end of the spectrum he has
been a role model while on the other
end he has been a target of anger.
To say that Marshall influeced every
American life would be an
understatement.
Headlines Around The U.S.
Fidel Castro
By Kelli Moore
Clinton Plans to Vaccinate All
U.S Children
Under this program, the federal government
will buy all childhood vaccines and then
redistribute them to public health clinics, as
well as to private doctors. This plan is
supported by child advocacy groups and
pediatricians. It is opposed by drug
companies who claim that this plan will
make manufacturing unprofitable and cut
spending on research for better vaccines.
Conservatives collect
ammunition to fight Gay
Issues
Clinton’s proposal to allow homosexuals in
the military has precipitated action from
many conservative and evangelical
Christian groups. This issue promises to be
the focus in the months to come.
Conservatives also plan to debate the 1964
Civil Rights Act because it is likely to have
proposals to protect homosexuals.