Mr. Obama, President-elect, Sir:

Your winning platform included talking with our "enemies" without preconditions. Could we begin with our Cuban neighbors just off our shore? Almost fifty years of economic blockade is enough! If our objective has been to squeeze Castro out of power and bring democracy and human rights to Cuba, it hasn't worked. Perhaps open trade and communication between Cuba the US would have hastened both these objectives. Instead we saw the old "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" as the Cuban government turned to Russia for support.

In 2005, a group of 15 Americans with It's Just the Kids went to Havana -- with a license from the US government -- and built four playgrounds for the Cuban children. We had to work every day in order to ensure we would not have time for sightseeing or travel into the countryside and we could not buy souvenirs other than art to make sure we weren't putting money into the Cuban economy. We saw this large sign erected by Castro on the waterfront Malecon, facing across the straits toward Florida.


Translated, it says "Senor Imperialists, we are absolutely not afraid of you!

Another translation: US policy has not worked.

If this tiny country can defiantly hold out for 50 years, imagine the outcome with Sarah Palin's suggestion that the US sanction Russia if they don't fall in line.

In 2006 as the hostile Bush administration tightened restrictions even further, the US government refused to issue a workable license for us to return to Cuba to build more playgrounds. As Patty would say, go figure! How were a bunch of playground building Americans in Cuba going to threaten US security? The huge amount of good will was not going to cost the government a penny -- Bill Hauf, a Republican, mind you, raised the money for the equipment himself. Not only that, he came back from the 2005 trip and ran for Congress. Not exactly what I'd call a bleeding heart liberal.

Mr. President-elect, consider this small step toward improving American relations with the world. Open up trade. Allow Americans free travel to Cuba as should be their right. We had a good start with the Clinton administration. After 8 years of a regressive administration, could we get back on track? We are waiting to build those playgrounds in Cuba.

Yours truly,
A left-leaning Republican in California.

Children of Cuba

These are some of the children, hanging out after school and watching the progress on their playground built by It's Just the Kids, and at the end of the week when the playgrounds opened.

With a Shield on My Arm: Americans in Cuba

Yesterday afternoon, "Anonymous" posted the following comment on “Americans in Cuba: It’s About Time”.

"I agree that anyone wanting to go and visit cuba should have the right to do so as a free citizen from any country.
I do have one question for you and that is : Did you visit any of the many political prisoners in the many cuban prisons just for daring to express what they feel?
Did you meet any of the thousands of mothers, wifes and sisters who have lost their loves one in the florida strait?
See is very easy to express your admiration for a system that you are not affected by, what you consider good is nothing more than adoctrination of the cuban children by the illegitimate goverment of the castro brothers."

When we traveled to Cuba to build our playgrounds, we did so with instructions to remain apolitical in order not to jeopardize our license. I was mindful of this in writing about the travel restrictions and, reading the article again, I believe I have held to this agreement. If admiration was expressed in my article, I hope it will be seen to be for Bill Hauf, the founder of It’s Just the Kids, for his initiative, courage and persistence to take goodwill ambassadors directly to the peoples of Cuba.

I am unsure what section of the article seemed to express admiration for the Cuban system. I will say this, though - I cannot but have admiration for the Cuban people who are resourceful, hard-working people let down by misguided governments. I’m not even sure “misguided governments” is the best way to say what has happened between neighbors.

There is no right on either side, only wrongs, with what has happened over the last 47 years between the American and Cuban governments. One does not have to visit the Cuban prisons or meet the grieving relatives to be “trembling with indignation” at the injustice and disservice to both peoples.

I would ask the reader to consider other questions here:

What has kept the U.S. travel and trade restrictions in place for almost a half century when clearly this approach has not achieved the expressed goal of bringing a democratically elected government to Cuba?

Have we learned anything from the US policy toward Cuba to keep history from repeating itself, or indeed do men like war?

If we are interested in seeing the Cuban children less indoctrinated, would this purpose be better served by a free exchange, travel and trade, between the peoples of the two countries?

How long would Castro have remained in power if the Cuban people had free access to American travel and trade?

What could happen if American peoples traveled to struggling countries with the shield on their arms of playgrounds and teachers and schools?

Americans in Cuba: It's About Time

Since a US travel and trade embargo was imposed in 1960, Americans have been restricted from travel to Cuba without a license from the US government issued only for charitable or humanitarian purposes. Americans have traveled to Cuba illegally by going through other countries but in recent years the Bush administration has enforced restrictions even on licensed travel, cutting the flow of Americans to Cuba to a trickle.

If HR 654 co-sponsored by Charles Rangel, the powerful chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, passes the House and Senate in the next couple months, Americans may finally have the right to visit this enchanting island. The bill won't lift the trade embargo or allow American citizens to bring back souveniers. President Bush has threatened to veto any legislation weakening the travel ban or the embargo against Cuba. But finally, there seems to be bipartisan support as well as popular American support to end the travel ban.

We have made peace with Vietnam, Germany, and Russia but we can't seem to make peace with our hemispheric brothers and sisters. It has become a pissing match between the US Government and Fidel Castro. Indeed, this billboard posted on the north shore of Havana, facing the US reads, "Senor imperialists, we have absolutely no fear of you".

Every other citizen of the world has the right to travel to Cuba. If caught traveling illegally to Cuba, Americans can be levied up to $65,000 in fines. Indeed, a San Diego woman who traveled to Cuba with a Canadian bicycling group received a fine of $10,000. Even with a travel license, it is illegal for Americans traveling to Cuba to bring back anything except original art. Not even a T-shirt. Bringing back a Cuban cigar is a felony.

In 2005, I traveled with 48 other Americans to build playgrounds in Cuba. It’s Just the Kids obtained a license to be used from 2003 to 2007 for trips to Cuba for this sole purpose. (Bill Hauf, a San Diegan, had noticed on a trip to Cuba that the children had little in the way of playgrounds and things to play with, and It's Just the Kids was born.) Volunteers built three state of the art playgrounds in 2003, four playgrounds in 2005. The Treasury Department interfered with the license in 2004 such that the group was unable to go. Again, when we planned to build three more playgrounds in 2006 the Treasury Department placed restrictions that made the project unfeasible. It took 49 of us to build four playgrounds in a week in 2005. At the last minute in April 2006, the US government would allow only nine volunteers four days to build three playgrounds, of course an impossible task and the trip was canceled.

The 2005 trip was in incredible people-to-people project for all of us. We had to sign an agreement with the US government to work every day to ensure we wouldn't have time to spend money in the Cuban economy. We worked our butts off in the sweltering heat to finish early and have time to see the beautiful, albeit crumbling architecture and take in the nightlife. But it was the experience with the people that was the most amazing.
















In each community a piece of vacant land was donated for our project, and Cubans were selected by the community to work alongside us.



With this piece of land and raw materials shipped from the US, working together with the Cubans, we assembled beautiful playgrounds. They prepared our lunch of good Cuban food every day and brought out the music to play while we worked.











At the end of one of our projects, the community held a program attended by the people and children of the community. The American and Cuban flags were set at the same level and the American anthem played following the Cuban anthem. There wasn't a dry eye on either side that day. The Cubans made it clear they had no issue with the American people, only with the American government and policy.


Best of all were the children.


They came after school to watch the progress of their playground, let us take pictures, bring flowers to the volunteers, and sing.



And when we opened the first playground, they rushed in to enjoy. It was another day of teary eyes for many of us adults.

So let us hope those who represent us in Washington will deliberate this current bill beyond politics and at least lift the travel restrictions.