Muleskinner

Issue date: 2/8/07 Section: Opinion

Fidel Castro has ruled Cuba with an iron fist for the last 48 years of his life. He has made the lives of Cuban citizens worse than unbearable, which has prompted a huge migration of Cuban nationals to the United States. Many come to this country by any means they can find, no matter how dangerous, and many of them have settled in Florida.

Now that Castro's illness is progressing more quickly with each passing day, he is said to be on his death bed. One would think this would bring happiness to the people of Cuba, but many Cuban immigrants want to take their celebration a step further. The city of Miami has created a special planning committee to organize a celebration at the Orange Bowl in the event of Castro's death. In fact, the committee is even planning on making T-shirts.

This is wrong on so many levels. No matter what a terrible person Fidel Castro may be, is it really ok to be running around the Orange Bowl in T-shirts displaying witty quips about a man's death? On a larger level, how can it be ok to run around at a highly televised sporting event celebrating death?

As many of us have grown up, we have attended funerals. We have sat in silence and listened to preachers, friends and family members talk about the deceased with respect. I'm sure many of us have had a really mean older relative who has died, and we may not have been terribly sad, but we surely didn't celebrate. That is the civilized thing to do.

Not that Fidel Castro can compare to a mean grandma, but the idea is the same. Would the people of the United States who aren't fans of the president have a party if he died? One could only hope not. Having a party will not change the fact Castro is dead. It will not make it any better or more satisfying. It will only prove the disrespect the people of this country have for human life.

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