It struck me by surprise as I review the The Portable Patriot: Documents, Sermons and Speeches That Compose the American Soul, that the news of Elian appears. Right before independence day was celebrated, news like this puts into question the political ideals which overshadows an individual’s life.
I don’t know if I want to participate with how a child’s life should be situated. Especially, when you’re young, you don’t really have a choice. The choices you’re given are forged by the beliefs of the adults who feverishly fights for something they believe in. It isn’t something which I necessarily believe in but it’s a common cycle.
It’s now over ten years and the boy has grown. Happily reunited with his father, the wonder of his life still provokes the American people. But here’s the thing, why?
Why are we so curious about this kid who was found on the waters towards America yet he cannot step onto the soils which he has no documents on? While his relatives argue with the American public and the government starts to step in, the situation is ballooned to strengths which even good may not be something of an outcome.
In fact, I’m scared for the child being in the public eye. His father who was a waiter became an elected official and recently Elian is enlisted in the Communist Army. The horror of knowing that there is a lot of rage in this child through some form of political or militant exercise scares me.
As Elian’s life was rallied on both sides, the American and the Cubans, where he truly belonged to wasn’t even the point. It became a political facade which brought into the public the pride of being someone.
Thus, don’t mess with someone whether that’s Asian, African, European, etc. You do that and you’re messing with the whole team. From this angle, you’re talking about a child here. If the laws which underlies our country says this and that but reality deems different. Don’t you think there should be some modification here?
Instead of blaming the immigrants or the outsider, I think as an American, our sense of duty to a country, to a people can sometimes be overshadowed by the defensive protection of our being. But overall, I think America was right to send the child back home.
With such a ruckus from Cuba broadcasting across the airwaves, not doing so could have led us to another war. I don’t think we’re ready for that. While decisions like these aren’t pleasant to began with, you want to see it from a broad spectrum where the future of a country may be in danger.
So rather than a message in a bottle came through, it became a message of destruction. The beautiful child had no idea what he was in for. He only played around in the toys his relatives endowed on him as they made him ignorant to life.
Do you think we destroyed the kid’s future?
His mother tried to escape the tyranny of the government only for her son to come back full round in a circle to salute to them. That there is an irony of life. It just goes to show that as a people, the young will no doubt be the future of something greater than ourselves.
Our independence from thereon will be a matter of choosing life and for 10 years, life still prevails. However as I said, what’s lurking beneath Cuba’s waters might come back with Elian.
We just have to watch out now.
What are your thoughts on Elian?
More Readings
10 years on, Elian not angry at relatives
Thanks to … Elian is now a full slave of the Castro brothers
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