Cuban Blogger Gets Pummeled by Government Thugs after Winning Prize

One of my idols, the author of Generation Y that gets a million hits a month, recently received a prestigious international award for her poignant blog that features abuses and hardships in Cuba.  Rather than be proud of the success of one of their own, the Cuban government forbade Yoani Sanchez from traveling outside Cuba to accept the award, and only days later, government thugs accosted her on a sidewalk and beat her to the point that she must walk with crutches while she heals. 

Certainly, this episode has given her some AWESOME fuel for her blog -- probably the opposite effect of what the Communist military regime had hoped to achieve.  In fact, while beating her, the men made it clear that she was going too far in her blog, and saying too much, and she basically needed to keep quiet.  Guess what?  Now a million readers around the world have learned about the true nature of censorship in Cuba, as she has blogged on every minute detail of the ordeal, right down to mentioning how she grabbed one of the men's testes during the altercation.

I can only hope that President Obama and other liberals who want to increase ties with Cuba and disregard sanctions have read Generation Y.  There is nothing pretty about censorship and an oppressive government. 

Meanwhile, I hope everyone out there who is as sensitive to insults as the Cuban government also takes note.  Whenever someone makes an uproar over the spoken or written word of someone else because they find it offensive, they are in some way diminishing freedom of speech. 

Think of the politician who was recently blasted for complimenting Jews for being frugal.  Turns out the Jews didn't consider that so much of a compliment as a stereotype, and Jim Ulmer was forced to make a huge apology.  To read the vicious comments online in response to his well-intended remark, you could almost picture such angry and insulted people wanting to pummel him the way the Cuban government put the blogger in her place.  

Consider the ridiculous Halloween scandal over the costume of an illegal alien, with the Latino community protesting.  Their feelings were hurt.  Seems whenever there is the most truth about a statement, there is the most backlash, with protests that presumably could turn violent under the right circumstances.  

Why such sensitivity?  Why don't people value freedom of speech and expression over protecting their own image?  After all, interest groups in the United States seem as eager as the Cuban government to censor not just the media and bloggers, but everyone who speaks.  Reminds me of the old childhood rhyme, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me."  Of course, that was always said at the very moment when someone's words DID hurt, and badly. 

No matter the pain of hearing the truth, or a partial truth, or an unpopular stereotype or caricature, that is far preferable to not hearing it!  Much better that we allow freedom of expression, and deal with our own feelings, than that we suppress all types of communication to try not to offend. 

One of my favorite sections of the bookstore is always where the political humor is located.  How great that we can allow such ridicule and mockery of our own presidents!  And live another day without fear of reprisal.  If the president must put up with it, then so must we all, and be grateful that we live in a place where we can openly state what is on our minds.

We must use our freedom of expression to speak out on behalf of people who are not so lucky, and call for our government to keep pressure on countries like Cuba until they change their barbaric ways. 

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