Thank you. Muchas gracias. Thank you so
much. Please. Thank you very much. President
Castro, the people of Cuba, thank you so much for the warm welcome that I
have received, that my family have received, and that our delegation has
received. It is an extraordinary honor to be here today.
Before I begin, please indulge me. I want to comment on
the terrorist
attacks that have taken place in Brussels. The thoughts and the
prayers of the American people are with the people of Belgium. We stand
in solidarity with them in condemning these outrageous attacks against innocent
people. We will do whatever is necessary to support our friend and ally,
Belgium, in bringing to justice those who are responsible. And this is
yet another reminder that the world must unite, we must be together, regardless
of nationality, or race, or faith, in fighting against the scourge of
terrorism. We can -- and will -- defeat those who threaten the safety and
security of people all around the world.
To the government and the people of Cuba, I want to thank you
for the kindness that you’ve shown to me and Michelle, Malia, Sasha, my
mother-in-law, Marian.
Cultivo una rosa blanca.1 In
his most
famous poem, Jose Martí
made this offering of friendship and peace to both his friend and his
enemy. Today, as the President of the United States of America, I offer
the Cuban people el saludo de paz.2
Havana is only 90 miles from Florida, but to get here we had
to travel a great distance -- over barriers of history and ideology; barriers
of pain and separation. The blue waters beneath Air Force One once
carried American battleships to this island -- to liberate, but also to exert
control over Cuba. Those waters also carried generations of Cuban
revolutionaries to the United States, where they built support for their
cause. And that short distance has been crossed by hundreds of thousands
of Cuban exiles -- on planes and makeshift rafts -- who came to America in
pursuit of freedom and opportunity, sometimes leaving behind everything they
owned and every person that they loved.
Like so many people in both of our countries, my lifetime has
spanned a time of isolation between us. The Cuban Revolution
took place the same year that my father came to the United States from
Kenya. The Bay
of Pigs took place the year that I was born. The next year, the entire
world held its breath, watching our two countries, as humanity came as close as
we ever have to the horror of nuclear war. As the decades rolled by, our
governments settled into a seemingly endless confrontation, fighting battles
through proxies. In a world that remade itself time and again, one
constant was the conflict between the United States and Cuba.
I have come here to bury the last remnant of the Cold War in
the Americas. I have come here to extend the hand of friendship to the
Cuban people.
I want to be clear: The differences between our
governments over these many years are real and they are important. I’m
sure President Castro would say the same thing -- I know, because I’ve heard
him address those differences at length. But before I discuss those
issues, we also need to recognize how much we share. Because in many
ways, the United States and Cuba are like two brothers who’ve been estranged
for many years, even as we share the same blood.
We both live in a new world, colonized by Europeans.
Cuba, like the United States, was built in part by slaves brought here from
Africa. Like the United States, the Cuban people can trace their heritage
to both slaves and slave-owners. We’ve welcomed both immigrants who came
a great distance to start new lives in the Americas.
Over the years, our cultures have blended
together. Dr.
Carlos Finlay’s work in Cuba paved the way for generations of doctors,
including Walter Reed,
who drew on Dr. Finlay’s work to help combat Yellow Fever. Just as Martí wrote some of his most famous words in New York, Ernest
Hemingway made a home in Cuba, and found inspiration in the waters of these
shores. We share a national past-time -- La Pelota -- and later
today our players will compete on the same Havana field that Jackie Robinson played
on before he made his Major League debut. And it's said that our greatest
boxer, Muhammad Ali,
once paid tribute to a Cuban that he could never fight -- saying that he would
only be able to reach a draw with the great Cuban, Teofilo Stevenson.
So even as our governments became adversaries, our people continued
to share these common passions, particularly as so many Cubans came to
America. In Miami or Havana, you can find places to dance the Cha-Cha-Cha
or the Salsa, and eat ropa
vieja. People in both of our countries have sung along with Celia
Cruz or Gloria Estefan, and now listen to reggaeton or Pitbull. Millions
of our people share a common religion -- a faith that I paid tribute to at the Shrine of our Lady of Charity in Miami,
a peace that Cubans find in La Cachita.
For all of our differences, the Cuban and American people
share common values in their own lives. A sense of patriotism and a sense
of pride -- a lot of pride. A profound love of family. A passion
for our children, a commitment to their education. And that's why I
believe our grandchildren will look back on this period of isolation as an
aberration, as just one chapter in a longer story of family and of friendship.
But we cannot, and should not, ignore the very real
differences that we have -- about how we organize our governments, our
economies, and our societies. Cuba has a one-party system; the United
States is a multi-party democracy. Cuba has a socialist economic model;
the United States is an open market. Cuba has emphasized the role and
rights of the state; the United States is founded upon the rights of the
individual.
Despite these differences, on December 17th 2014, President
Castro and I announced
that the United States and Cuba would begin a process to normalize relations
between our countries. Since then, we have established diplomatic
relations and opened embassies. We've begun initiatives to cooperate on
health and agriculture, education and law enforcement. We've reached
agreements to restore direct flights and mail service. We've expanded
commercial ties, and increased the capacity of Americans to travel and do
business in Cuba.
And these changes have been welcomed, even though there are
still opponents to these policies. But still, many people on both sides
of this debate have asked: Why now? Why now?
There is one simple answer: What the United States was
doing was not working. We have to have the courage to acknowledge that
truth. A policy of isolation designed for the Cold War made little sense
in the 21st century. The embargo was only hurting the Cuban people
instead of helping them. And I've always believed in what Martin Luther
King, Jr. called “the fierce urgency of now”3
-- we should not fear change, we should embrace it.
That leads me to a bigger and more important reason for these
changes: Creo en el pueblo Cubano. I believe in the Cuban
people. This is not just a policy of normalizing relations with the Cuban
government. The United States of America is normalizing relations with
the Cuban people.
And today, I want to share with you my vision of what our
future can be. I want the Cuban people -- especially the young people --
to understand why I believe that you should look to the future with hope; not
the false promise which insists that things are better than they really are, or
the blind optimism that says all your problems can go away tomorrow. Hope
that is rooted in the future that you can choose and that you can shape, and
that you can build for your country.
I'm hopeful because I believe that the Cuban people are as
innovative as any people in the world.
In a global economy, powered by ideas and information, a
country’s greatest asset is its people. In the United States, we have a
clear monument to what the Cuban people can build: it’s called Miami.
Here in Havana, we see that same talent in cuentapropistas, cooperatives
and old cars that still run. El Cubano inventa del aire.
Cuba has an extraordinary resource -- a system of education
which values every boy and every girl. And in recent years, the Cuban
government has begun to open up to the world, and to open up more space for
that talent to thrive. In just a few years, we've seen how cuentapropistas
can succeed while sustaining a distinctly Cuban spirit. Being
self-employed is not about becoming more like America, it’s about being
yourself.
Look at Sandra Lidice Aldama, who chose to start a small
business. Cubans, she said, can “innovate and adapt without losing our
identity…our secret is in not copying or imitating but simply being ourselves.”
Look at Papito Valladeres, a barber, whose success allowed
him to improve conditions in his neighborhood. “I realize I’m not going
to solve all of the world’s problems,” he said. “But if I can solve
problems in the little piece of the world where I live, it can ripple across
Havana.”
That’s where hope begins -- with the ability to earn your own
living, and to build something you can be proud of. That’s why our
policies focus on supporting Cubans, instead of hurting them. That’s why
we got rid of limits on remittances -- so ordinary Cubans have more
resources. That’s why we’re encouraging travel -- which will build
bridges between our people, and bring more revenue to those Cuban small
businesses. That’s why we’ve opened up space for commerce and exchanges -- so
that Americans and Cubans can work together to find cures for diseases, and
create jobs, and open the door to more opportunity for the Cuban people.
As President of the United States, I’ve called on our
Congress to lift the embargo. It is an outdated burden on the Cuban
people. It's a burden on the Americans who want to work and do business
or invest here in Cuba. It's time to lift the embargo. But even if
we lifted the embargo tomorrow, Cubans would not realize their potential without
continued change here in Cuba. It should be easier to open a business here
in Cuba. A worker should be able to get a job directly with companies who
invest here in Cuba. Two currencies shouldn’t separate the type of
salaries that Cubans can earn.
The Internet should be available across the island, so that
Cubans can connect to the wider world -- and to one of the greatest engines of
growth in human history.
There’s no limitation from the United States on the ability
of Cuba to take these steps. It’s up to you. And I can tell you as
a friend that sustainable prosperity in the 21st century depends upon
education, health care, and environmental protection. But it also depends
on the free and open exchange of ideas. If you can’t access information
online, if you cannot be exposed to different points of view, you will not
reach your full potential. And over time, the youth will lose hope.
I know these issues are sensitive, especially coming from an
American President. Before 1959, some Americans saw Cuba as something to
exploit, ignored poverty, enabled corruption. And since 1959, we’ve been
shadow-boxers in this battle of geopolitics and personalities. I know the
history, but I refuse to be trapped by it.
I’ve made it clear that the United States has neither the
capacity, nor the intention to impose change on Cuba. What changes come
will depend upon the Cuban people. We will not impose our political or
economic system on you. We recognize that every country, every people,
must chart its own course and shape its own model. But having removed the
shadow of history from our relationship, I must speak honestly about the things
that I believe -- the things that we, as Americans, believe. As Martí
said, “Liberty is the right of every man to be honest, to think and to speak
without hypocrisy.”4
So let me tell you what I believe. I can't force you to
agree, but you should know what I think. I believe that every person
should be equal under the law. Every child deserves the dignity that comes with
education, and health care and food on the table and a roof over their
heads. I believe citizens should be free to speak their mind without fear
-- to organize, and to criticize their government, and to protest peacefully,
and that the rule of law should not include arbitrary detentions of people who
exercise those rights. I believe that every person should have the freedom
to practice their faith peacefully and publicly. And, yes, I believe
voters should be able to choose their governments in free and democratic
elections.
Not everybody agrees with me on this. Not everybody
agrees with the American people on this. But I believe those human rights
are universal. I believe they are the rights of the American people, the
Cuban people, and people around the world.
Now, there’s no secret that our governments disagree on many
of these issues. I’ve had frank conversations with President
Castro. For many years, he has pointed out the flaws in the American
system -- economic inequality; the death penalty; racial discrimination; wars
abroad. That’s just a sample. He has a much longer list. But
here’s what the Cuban people need to understand: I welcome this open
debate and dialogue. It’s good. It’s healthy. I’m not afraid of it.
We do have too much money in American politics. But, in
America, it's still possible for somebody like me -- a child who was raised by
a single mom, a child of mixed race who did not have a lot of money -- to
pursue and achieve the highest office in the land. That's what’s possible
in America.
We do have challenges with racial bias -- in our communities,
in our criminal justice system, in our society -- the legacy of slavery and
segregation. But the fact that we have open debates within America’s own
democracy is what allows us to get better. In 1959, the year that my
father moved to America, it was illegal for him to marry my mother, who was
white, in many American states. When I first started school, we were
still struggling to desegregate schools across the American South. But people
organized; they protested; they debated these issues; they challenged
government officials. And because of those protests, and because of those
debates, and because of popular mobilization, I’m able to stand here today as
an African-American and as President of the United States. That was
because of the freedoms that were afforded in the United States that we were
able to bring about change.
I’m not saying this is easy. There’s still enormous
problems in our society. But democracy is the way that we solve
them. That's how we got health care for more of our people. That's
how we made enormous gains in women’s rights and gay rights. That's how
we address the inequality that concentrates so much wealth at the top of our
society. Because workers can organize and ordinary people have a voice,
American democracy has given our people the opportunity to pursue their dreams
and enjoy a high standard of living.
Now, there are still some tough fights. It isn’t always
pretty, the process of democracy. It's often frustrating. You
can see that in the election going on back home. But just stop and
consider this fact about the American campaign that's taking place right
now. You had two Cuban Americans in the Republican Party5, running against the legacy of a black man
who is President, while arguing that they’re the best person to beat the
Democratic nominee who will either be a woman or a Democratic Socialist.
Who would have believed that back in 1959? That's a measure of our
progress as a democracy.
So here’s my message to the Cuban government and the Cuban
people: The ideals that are the starting point for every revolution --
America’s revolution, Cuba’s revolution, the liberation movements around the
world -- those ideals find their truest expression, I believe, in
democracy. Not because American democracy is perfect, but precisely
because we’re not. And we -- like every country -- need the space that
democracy gives us to change. It gives individuals the capacity to be
catalysts to think in new ways, and to re-imagine how our society should be,
and to make them better.
There’s already an evolution taking place inside of Cuba, a
generational change. Many suggested that I come here and ask the people
of Cuba to tear something down -- but I’m appealing to the young people of Cuba
who will lift something up, build something new. El
futuro de Cuba tiene que estar en las manos del pueblo Cubano.6
And to President Castro -- who I appreciate being here today
-- I want you to know, I believe my visit here demonstrates you do not need to
fear a threat from the United States. And given your commitment to Cuba’s
sovereignty and self-determination, I am also confident that you need not fear
the different voices of the Cuban people -- and their capacity to speak, and
assemble, and vote for their leaders. In fact, I’m hopeful for the future
because I trust that the Cuban people will make the right decisions.
And as you do, I’m also confident that Cuba can continue to
play an important role in the hemisphere and around the globe -- and my hope
is, is that you can do so as a partner with the United States.
We’ve played very different roles in the world. But no
one should deny the service that thousands of Cuban doctors have delivered for
the poor and suffering. Last year, American health care workers -- and the
U.S. military -- worked side-by-side with Cubans to save lives and stamp out
Ebola in West Africa. I believe that we should continue that kind of
cooperation in other countries.
We’ve been on the different side of so many conflicts in the
Americas. But today, Americans and Cubans are sitting together at the
negotiating table, and we are helping the Colombian people resolve a civil war
that’s dragged on for decades. That kind of cooperation is good for
everybody. It gives everyone in this hemisphere hope.
We took different journeys to our support for the people of
South Africa in ending apartheid.
But President Castro and
I could both be there in Johannesburg to pay tribute to the legacy of the
great Nelson Mandela. And in examining his life and his words, I'm sure we
both realize we have more work to do to promote equality in our own countries
-- to reduce discrimination based on race in our own countries. And in
Cuba, we want our engagement to help lift up the Cubans who are of African
descent -- who’ve proven that there’s nothing they cannot achieve when given
the chance.
We’ve been a part of different blocs of nations in the
hemisphere, and we will continue to have profound differences about how to
promote peace, security, opportunity, and human rights. But as we
normalize our relations, I believe it can help foster a greater sense of unity
in the Americas -- todos somos Americanos.7
From the beginning of my time in office, I’ve urged the
people of the Americas to leave behind the ideological battles of the
past. We are in a new era. I know that many of the issues that I’ve
talked about lack the drama of the past. And I know that part of Cuba’s
identity is its pride in being a small island nation that could stand up for
its rights, and shake the world. But I also know that Cuba will always stand
out because of the talent, hard work, and pride of the Cuban people.
That's your strength. Cuba doesn’t have to be defined by being against the
United States, any more than the United States should be defined by being
against Cuba. I'm hopeful for the future because of the reconciliation
that’s taking place among the Cuban people.
I know that for some Cubans on the island, there may be a
sense that those who left somehow supported the old order in Cuba. I'm
sure there’s a narrative that lingers here which suggests that Cuban exiles
ignored the problems of pre-Revolutionary Cuba, and rejected the struggle to
build a new future. But I can tell you today that so many Cuban exiles
carry a memory of painful -- and sometimes violent -- separation. They
love Cuba. A part of them still considers this their true home. That’s
why their passion is so strong. That's why their heartache is so
great. And for the Cuban American community that I’ve come to know and
respect, this is not just about politics. This is about family -- the memory of
a home that was lost; the desire to rebuild a broken bond; the hope for a
better future the hope for return and reconciliation.
For all of the politics, people are people, and Cubans are
Cubans. And I’ve come here -- I’ve traveled this distance -- on a bridge
that was built by Cubans on both sides of the Florida Straits. I first
got to know the talent and passion of the Cuban people in America. And I
know how they have suffered more than the pain of exile -- they also know what
it’s like to be an outsider, and to struggle, and to work harder to make sure
their children can reach higher in America.
So the reconciliation of the Cuban people -- the children and
grandchildren of revolution, and the children and grandchildren of exile --
that is fundamental to Cuba’s future.
You see it in Gloria Gonzalez, who traveled here in 2013 for
the first time after 61 years of separation, and was met by her sister,
Llorca. “You recognized me, but I didn’t recognize you,” Gloria said
after she embraced her sibling. Imagine that, after 61 years.
You see it in Melinda Lopez, who came to her family’s old
home. And as she was walking the streets, an elderly woman recognized her
as her mother’s daughter, and began to cry. She took her into her home
and showed her a pile of photos that included Melinda’s baby picture, which her
mother had sent 50 years ago. Melinda later said, “So many of us are now
getting so much back.”
You see it in Cristian Miguel Soler, a young man who became
the first of his family to travel here after 50 years. And meeting
relatives for the first time, he said, “I realized that family is family no
matter the distance between us.”
Sometimes the most important changes start in small places.
The tides of history can leave people in conflict and exile and poverty.
It takes time for those circumstances to change. But the recognition of a
common humanity, the reconciliation of people bound by blood and a belief in
one another -- that’s where progress begins. Understanding, and
listening, and forgiveness. And if the Cuban people face the future together,
it will be more likely that the young people of today will be able to live with
dignity and achieve their dreams right here in Cuba.
The history of the United States and Cuba encompass
revolution and conflict; struggle and sacrifice; retribution and, now,
reconciliation. It is time, now, for us to leave the past behind.
It is time for us to look forward to the future together -- un future de
esperanza.8 And it
won’t be easy, and there will be setbacks. It will take time. But
my time here in Cuba renews my hope and my confidence in what the Cuban people
will do. We can make this journey as friends, and as neighbors, and as
family -- together.
Si se puede. Muchas gracias.
(Nguon: Americanrhetoric.com)
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