WINTERVILLE — Alina Fernandez, daughter of controversial Cuban leader Fidel Castro, spoke in Pitt Community College’s Craig F. Goess Student Center on Oct. 2 as part of the college’s celebration of "National Hispanic Heritage Month."
The event featured Fernandez discussing her experiences growing up in Cuba before and after the revolution that transformed the country into a government-controlled nation with few freedoms for its citizens.
The 56-year-old Fernandez, who now lives in Florida after fleeing Cuba in 1993, witnessed the revolution firsthand and described her father as a "master of control and manipulation." She said her grandmother was much more succinct, though, simply referring to Castro as "the devil."
Through her remarks, Fernandez painted a picture of an island nation oppressed by a government that created Committees for the Defense of the Revolution essentially to spy and report on the activities of its citizens. Even her favorite cartoons were taken off television and replaced by countless hours of Castro giving speeches.
"(Castro) was overwhelming," Fernandez said with a heavy Cuban accent. "He was everywhere at the same time."
Fernandez called her father "a textbook dictator" who seized full control of Cuba’s media, mail, phone lines and education.
Fernandez said he executed enemies of the revolution that brought him to power, garnered Russian support to fortify his position of leadership, started a nuclear confrontation with the United States 50 years ago this month, and promoted American hatred globally.
Under Castro’s rule, Fernandez said, citizens received their income from the government and were assigned specific markets where they could shop for food and everyday supplies. It was a scenario, she said, that often left citizens without items they needed and ultimately led to the expansion of the black market.
"Nothing that you have is secure; they can take it away at any time," Fernandez said. "… It’s a society in which everybody is obligated to steal at some point in order to survive."
Fernandez noted that 11 U.S. presidents have been in office since Castro took control of Cuba in 1959 and there has been no success in establishing freedom for the island’s citizens.
Fernandez said that there is no willingness on the part of the Cuban government to work toward resolving its differences with its neighbor to the north.
Fernandez’s appearance at PCC was organized by the college’s Multicultural Activities Committee, which held a welcome reception for international students in August and has scheduled numerous events throughout the year to celebrate various cultures.
"We are always looking for new ways to foster inclusiveness and knowledge, as well as celebrate the diverse beauty of our world and its people," said Regina Garcia, co-chair of the PCC Multicultural Activities Committee.
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