Hate Crimes?

Hate Crimes? / Rosa María Rodríguez Torrado
Rosa María Rodríguez Torrado, Translator: William Fitzhugh

The Cuban paper Granma is an inexhaustible assortment of themes for any
attentive reader. I , at the risk of seeming repetitive and without any
intention of making copies of what they publish, found myself often
challenging their texts and points of view, as in this case. The note
shown in the image published by Prensa Latina, appeared on the first
page of the aforementioned daily this past July 2 and because of its
poor quality, I transcribe.

STOCKHOLM- Sweden reported a notable increase in hate crimes for the
year 2011 compared to the previous year according to a report revealed
by the Swedish National Council for the Prevention of Crime.

For the year 2011, the Nordic nation recorded 5493 crimes of this
nature, some 350 more than during 2010. According to the study, racist
acts, the majority of which took the form of verbal threats, followed by
those with.the highest rate of physical violence, were most frequently
directed at homosexuals.

In accordance with the most widely accepted understanding, hate crimes
take place when a person attacks another and chooses their victim as a
function of their belonging to a designated social group according to
age, race, gender, gender identity, religion, ethnicity, nationality,
political affiliation, handicap, or sexual orientation.

It seems that Prensa Latina is trying to ignore what happened in Cuba in
the '60s with these types of actions like when they reviled those who
were leaving the country and prevented them from taking or disposing of
their own property, even their toiletries. They are trying to ignore the
humiliation that Cubans suffered in the following decades because of the
simple fact of their wanting to emigrate and how they were sent to
perform farm work in order to humiliate them further. They also revert
to forgetfulness when the historic leader of the Revolution said
publicly regarding those who were leaving Cuba, not to return: "we don't
want them, we don't need them."

I understand that it's not constructive to spend one's life "reading old
newspapers". But are they that old? The only and state supported
television of my country lacks programs with lead actors considered
black on account of their skin color; there is political discrimination,
after all, only one party is recognized and legally accepted; and they
attack defenseless women like the Women in White for standing up for the
rights and freedom of the Cuban people. Are these not hate crimes
fomented by the government itself?

Translated by William Fitzhugh

July 10 2012

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