BaSICCally said:
"In 1980, Fidel Castro emptied Cuban prisons and mental hospitals, declareing that "all" who wished to leave Cuba could do so. Thus began the Mariel boatlifts, from the Cuban port of Mariel to south Florida.""Many of these more recent refugees crerated problems for the U.S. governemnt and the Cuban community in south Florida in the areas of employment, crime, housing, and welfare services."
A good attempt at twisting fact.
The Cuban government said all could leave that wanted to leave, but that has always been Cuban policy since the revolution, so that's not even worthy of mentioning (unless you want to attempt to twist it into something that readers will assume means that Cuba is closed off by the Cuban government). It is the United States that impeeds travel of Cubans to the U.S. But that was all covered in my previous post, read that if you need further explanations.
The Mariel Boatlifts didn't begin with the Cuban government allowing people to leave, since they always could, but instead was initiated by the U.S. government under president Jimmy Carter. Carter issued a Presidential Memorandum allowing up to 3,500 refugees sanctuary in the U.S. First priority would go to released political prisoners, second to members of families already in the U.S., and third to refugees seeking political asylum.
Now i better break this one down for yall, since the whole reading comprehension thing is still evasive.
political prisoners =
Known to the rest of the world and intelligent people as criminals and includes:
People that get caught by Cuban coast guard after stealing boats obviously go to jail, just as they would in any other country. But once in jail that is when the U.S. interest section comes calling (after repeatedly ignoring attempts at a visa for legal immigration to the US) saying now they are ready to grant them a visa if they sign statements declaring themselves political prisoners.
seeking political asylum =
Because of the Cuba Adjustment Act (Which was in effect at the time of the Mariel boat lift) , all Cuban immigrants are considered political refugees seeking political asylum:
The Cuban Adjustment act, was adopted by the US congress on the 2nd of November of 1966, under the Lyndon Johnson administration. It's main provisions was to change the legal status of the Cuban immigrants; to treat them as political refugees and to grant them political asylum; and as such provide them immediately with privileges that no other group enjoys, such as, automatic permanent residence status - all without review and without the usual waiting time.
The problem was that Carter didn't offer up ships or anything to take these "political refugees" to the U.S. So hundreds of people in the U.S. had to take private or commercial boats down to Cuba to bring people to the U.S. And when they started to receive more people than they expected, including "undesirables", they did everything they could to prevent them from coming to the U.S.
The Coast Guard announced it was illegal to transit in an unauthorized vessel and pick up people in violation of immigration and customs laws. Vessels with gross safety violations were escorted into port until violations were corrected. Commercial vessels carrying large numbers of aliens without visas were detained until collateral for fines was produced.
Carter implemented a five-point program on May 14th. New boat trips to Cuba were prohibited and vessels already in Mariel Harbor were urged to return without refugees. The plan called for the U.S. government to arrange alternative transportation for Cuban citizens desiring to emigrate through an organized sea lift that would ensure safe and orderly transportation. (but that never happened because it wouldn't have been a good propaganda tool to use against Cuba if people traveled safely). All U.S. boats in Mariel and those en route to Cuba were advised to return to the United States without delay.
Once again showing that if the U.S. government or the powerful Cuba-American lobby were concerned with the well fair of these people and in seeing them on a safe voyage to the U.S. then they would provide for safe travel for them.
But in reality it is all a propaganda campaign organized in an attempt to discredit the Cuban revolution.
Its much more important for their propaganda to show people on these unsafe boats trying to leave. Provide them with safe travel and they’d take it.
BaSICCally said:
Why would the upper and middle class LEAVE Cuba. . . . Why leave if they could of reap the benefits in Cuba?
The exploiters usually don't wanna stick around to have to look into the face of the people they regularly dick over. What kinda pimp wants to face a former whore who now has some power and courage and is on equal footing (which is the great benefit of the Cuban Revolution) with them? None, cuz it scares the shit out of em. Cuz then they have to own up for being evil. And it’s a simple fact that most, if not all, of those people were/are evil.
