01 May 2001 Elian and Juan Gonzalez, Clinton, Castro, Reno, Blacks, Liberals and Freedom, by Kevin Martin

On April 22, I awoke to the rumblings of a communist state here in America. Federal agents, under orders from Bill Clinton and Janet Reno, broke down the door of Lazaro Gonzalez’s home in Miami to forcibly reunite little Elian Gonzalez with his Cuban father.

From the very start, liberal blacks in Congress like Maxine Waters and Sheila Jackson-Lee pushed for Elian’s return to Cuba. They charge there is a double standard between U.S. policy toward Cuba and Haiti. They seem to forget that our military invaded Haiti in 1994 to restore its first democratically-elected president to power. In Haiti, the poor economy is the main reason that Haitians still flee. In Cuba, the iron-fist rule of communist dictator Fidel Castro is the reason. Both Waters and Lee support Castro and have worked hard to put a end to the decades-old U.S. embargo against his rule.

I can’t imagine why Waters and Lee would support Castro. According to the U.S. State Department, the Cuban government disproportionately harasses black youth and blacks reportedly make up more than half of the prison population despite being only 12% of the population. Furthermore, blacks and mulattos are underrepresented in the government and upper ranks of the military and new migration rules have been instituted to keep blacks and mulattos from moving to urban areas in Cuba.

One also wonders how Waters and Lee would react if New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani ordered the police to kick down the door of a black Haitian family shielding a child from the authorities in a situation similar to Elian’s. Would they support the mayor’s actions? I doubt it. They would let fly with charges of racism and unnecessary force.

I have no doubt Juan Gonzalez loves his child, but I must question why he did not go straight to Miami months ago. In the early days, Juan Gonzalez seemed indifferent, living with his new family (Juan and Elian’s mother were divorced). As soon as Fidel Castro demanded Elian’s return to Cuba, however, Gonzalez became more concerned. It makes me think the father’s actions are not that of a free man. Castro is probably holding other family members hostage.

Clinton and Reno seem willing to play along with Castro’s actions on the pretext of upholding the father’s parental rights and the rule of law. Since when did the rule of law become so important to them? They have stalled every investigation into the White House scandals and played the role of victims while undermining the rule of law and the Constitution at the same time. Also, when did a father’s rights become the corner stone of liberal thinking? In the mind of radical liberals, a father is nothing more than a sperm donor to pay child support and enjoy no rights to a child. And why is NOW is not calling on us to honor the will of Elian’s dead mother? She died to bring him here for a better life.

The liberal media appears to be giving Bill Clinton and Janet Reno another free ride, but I still have very important questions. When was Fidel Castro elected president of the United States? When did Castro’s will work its way into American law? Will Juan Gonzalez have his son living with him when he returns to Cuba, or will he be taken away to a special school and labor for the government – the normal practice for Cuban children? If that happens, will Maxine Waters and Sheila Jackson-Lee go to Cuba to fight for him?

We’ve also found that Al Gore’s word seems to carry no weight with Bill Clinton. Gore allegedly wants the matter to be handled in the family court system. Is Gore the number two man at the White House or just a Teddy Ruxpin doll who can have his tape pulled out when he disagrees?

I don’t know. Maybe I am still asleep and it is still the Saturday morning before Easter. Soon my alarm will go off and I’ll awake in a free America. If not, I hope the rest of America hears an alarm going off warning of the threat to their freedom. We shouldn’t have more jackbooted thugs kicking down more doors.

###(Kevin Martin is a member of Project 21 working for an environmental contractor in the Washington, DC area. He can be reached at [email protected].)

Note: New Visions Commentaries reflect the views of their author, and not necessarily those of Project 21.