By Guille Vilar
Mr. President, I am a quiet and peaceful 75-year-old Cuban citizen, a graduate of Art History from the University of Havana. For fifty years, I have worked professionally promoting and appreciating music through radio, television, and newspaper articles about music that stems from our cultural roots, as well as music from other parts of the world, including North American music.
Allow me to tell you, Mr. President, that our people, as neighbors of the great nation you lead, are sincere admirers of North American culture in its many facets.
If we turn to the film industry, it’s very difficult to find a Cuban who doesn’t hold their country’s cinematic work in high esteem. In my case, Casablanca is my favorite film, as are Spielberg’s Close Encounters, Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, and Mark Rydell’s On Golden Lagoon, among so many others.
As for sports, what Cuban baseball fan doesn’t enjoy the magnificent games played in Major League Baseball or the basketball in the admired NBA? In this discussion, I can’t fail to mention the presence in our country of that great chess player, Robert Fischer, as a guest at the 17th World Chess Olympiad in Havana in 1966. Suffice it to say that Fischer was the favorite player among Cubans for the brilliance of his moves, which have become legendary.
Regarding your country’s music, Mr. President, it is a true pleasure to enjoy such a diverse and high-caliber selection. From Jimi Hendrix’s unparalleled experimental spirit to Bob Dylan’s singular poetry and the unforgettable vocal harmonies of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, the 1960s are a true treasure trove, impossible to ignore. When it comes to blues and jazz, the voices of Muddy Waters and B.B. King, as well as those of Bessie Smith and Ella Fitzgerald—the latter a true goddess of American song—are etched in my soul. Miles Davis’s innovative talent continues to inspire jazz musicians in the 21st century, just as Wynton Marsalis gave a fabulous concert with Eric Clapton at the Kennedy Center.
Although I’ve promoted all these artists on Cuban radio and television, I also run the Yellow Submarine Cultural Center, where rock bands from our country perform covers of rock classics from all eras. This is enjoyed not only by our regular customers but also by visiting student groups from our country who are pleasantly surprised to hear songs like Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” on our submarine.
Of course, I’ve always been a Bruce Springsteen fan since the Badlands era, but now I admire him even more after his recent release of the song “Streets of Minneapolis,” dedicated to immigrant neighbors and to the memory of American citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti, murdered by “federal thugs” who have imposed “state terror” on the streets of Minneapolis on the orders of “King Trump.”
Obviously, our letter is truly addressed to our brothers and sisters in the United States who see the Cuban people as wonderful neighbors who, in addition to wanting to learn firsthand about the social benefits we have achieved, enjoy our warm summer sun, our joyful music, and the proverbial Cuban camaraderie. To them we direct this heartfelt appeal for solidarity, urging them to prevent the implementation of your executive order to block the arrival of oil to our country by imposing tariffs on those who supply it.
Mr. President, we are certain that it is none other than the American people themselves who will remove you from office because of all the serious conflicts you have generated and the atrocities you are committing around the world, ignoring the basic principles of international relations, even the laws of your own nation. However, in light of your declarations of intent to bomb and invade our country, allow me to make a pertinent clarification regarding a slogan that has been offensively manipulated.
When Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro first uttered the slogan “Homeland or Death,” it was at the farewell ceremony for the victims of the explosion of the French ship La Coubre on March 5, 1960, in the port of Havana. The essence that characterizes this expression is that Cubans are…
When Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro first uttered the slogan “Homeland or Death,” it was at the funeral service for the victims of the explosion of the French ship La Coubre on March 5, 1960, in Havana harbor. The essence of this expression is that Cubans are prepared to give what is most precious to them—their lives, if necessary—to defend the sacred soil of their homeland. It is not at all our desire to spread death, as you do with the indifference and shamelessness characteristic of you, as if the loss of human lives, of innocent people, meant nothing to you as long as you achieve your personal ambitions.
Finally, a warning: We Cubans with courage, aware of the meaning of honor and dignity—human attributes you clearly lack—advise you, Mr. President, that it is never wise to abuse the weak or the seemingly defenseless, for you could face an unexpected and merciless response. Remember that our motto, “Homeland or Death,” ends with the firmest resolve: “Patria o Muerte! Venceremos! Venceremos por la vida!” “We shall overcome. We shall overcome for life!”
I bid you farewell, Mr. President, with the certainty of having expressed my infinite admiration and respect for the American people, and of having made it clear that, old as I am, I will fight alongside my compatriots to the very end.
Sincerely, Guille Vilar
- Renowned communicator in Cuban print, radio, and television media. Founder and director of A Capella, a television program.
