Because my father is Cuban, I care a great deal about our relationship with the island of Cuba and its people. My grandfather was a political prisoner during the Castro regime and was tortured in prison. My father and aunt were moved by my grandmother weekly to avoid government agents who were actively looking for them as a way to pressure my grandfather. When my father came to this country, he did so with a gun aimed at him amid shouts of “Anyone who looks back will be shot.” He also remembers standing in food lines as a young child to get basic necessities.
A recent world event I care a great deal about is the embargo with Cuba. I feel it should be lifted. If we want to repair the relationship between Cuba and the United States, we should get rid of the embargo. It would be beneficial both economically and politically to get along with a country so nearby. Currently, the ten members of our Congress who are Cuban-American are all in favor of the embargo and support a hardline viewpoint. This stance keeps all the money, goods, and services away from the communist regime. I may not have the policy-making experience that they do, however, I feel differently. This not only cripples Cuba, but has far-reaching effects around the globe. If we keep the embargo, Cuba has no choice except to go to places like Russia, China, and North Korea. The embargo also hurts the U.S. economically. We are missing many trade opportunities. The embargo harms the people of Cuba and not the government as it was originally intended.
Eliminating the embargo would allow Cubans to have more economic prosperity and better access to food, medicine, and other goods. Eliminating it would allow more goods and services to return to the island and prosperity would begin to be restored to the people. Allowing the people to be more prosperous, I believe, is a step toward improving the human rights issues such as the lack of freedom of speech or the freedom of religion that have plagued Cuba. Eliminating the embargo is also a gesture of goodwill. It would pave the way for better diplomatic ties. Cuba would be more likely to work with us instead of against us. They would be more receptive to our attempts to help them improve human rights and oppressive government restrictions.
Eliminating the embargo is a first important step to healing our relationship with Cuba. During the Obama administration, progress was being made. The American Embassy was back in Havana. Tourism was restored. Exiled families could visit. But the Trump administration reversed these advances. If we could again try to restore relations — beginning with the elimination of the embargo — the Cuban people would potentially realize that their struggles were the result of the failed economic policy of communism and not caused by the United States. We could again become friends and good neighbors.