Granderson: Trump wants to ‘take’ Cuba, but we’ve done that repeatedly before |
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During President Obama’s first term, when the U.S. and Cuba initially made attempts to thaw our icy relationship, I visited the island country as part of an educational delegation.
We met with government officials including Mariela Castro, the daughter of then-President Raul Castro, as she was working on pro-LGBTQ legislation. We visited the burial site of national hero José Martí, who is credited with sparking the revolution that freed the nation from Spain. And we spent time at San Juan Hill, site of the most significant battle in the Spanish-American War, after which the U.S. essentially took Spain’s place.
So when President Trump floats the idea of a “friendly takeover of Cuba” or “taking Cuba in some form,” do keep in mind we did that already, back in 1898.
Soon after Spain withdrew its troops from Havana, U.S. forces began an occupation that would last three years under the guise of stability. Meanwhile the large sugar and tobacco plantations that once belonged to former colonizers were quickly being absorbed by American corporations — not by Cubans. That’s why, before leaving, the U.S. required an amendment be added to the country’s constitution making it legal for the U.S. to overrule domestic policies. A second U.S. occupation soon followed.
By now it was clear to Cubans still recovering from the war for independence that freedom from Spain did not mean sovereignty. When it comes to the foreign policy of the most powerful nations, protecting economic interests will always trump the needs of the local population. The tension between the U.S. commerce-driven society and the sovereignty of our trading partners is what dictates our relationship with nations rich in natural resources. Case in point: The roots of our decades of conflict with Iran do not trace back to religious expression or form of government but rather access to oil. At one point during the 1950s, 90% of Cuba’s mines belonged to U.S. companies.
Trump can contemplate taking Cuba, but the reality is the U.S. “took” Cuba decades before Fidel Castro, Raul’s brother and predecessor, introduced communism or his family rose to power. We “took” Cuba before President Kennedy initiated his crippling embargo in 1962. The reality is Cuba has been ours since the Treaty of Paris was signed nearly 130 years ago. And the U.S. began that relationship with the free Cuban people, many of whom had been enslaved by Spain, not by inviting them to the negotiation table in France but by dictating terms.
It’s a story I was told often by locals as I made my way around the country. Whether the communist government instructed the people I spoke with to........