Michelle Patt . Chicago Tribune. April 25, 2000
CHICAGO -- Why would Elian's father, Juan Miguel Gonzalez, possibly want to stay in the U.S.?
Anti-Castro groups have repeatedly said that once Juan Miguel could experience American freedom firsthand, he would want that freedom for himself and for his son.
This is what he has seen so far of American freedom:
That distant relatives can kidnap a child and refuse to return him, even though the parent who has legal custody demands his return.
That people can disregard legal federal orders simply because they belong to a politically powerful special-interest group, and have surrounded their home by a vocal, angry mob that vows to impede the government's efforts to uphold the law.
That the decisions of government officials are based not on law or justice but on what is politically expedient (especially in an election year).
That if a court does not rule in your favor, you can plead your case again with another court, hoping to find one that will agree with you.
That when groups of people are dissatisfied with the actions of the government, they react by rioting, setting fires, and attacking police and members of the press.
Juan Miguel Gonzalez has not seen democracy in action. Instead he has seen bureaucracy, political pandering and mob rule. If the United States really wants to prove to the people of Cuba that our system is better than theirs, we need to set a better example. |