I believe that the current US-government restrictions that effectively prohibit Americans from visiting Cuba are a violation of our most basic consitutional rights. In October 1998 I had the opportunity to travel legally to Cuba with a delegation of 18 incredible women from across the US. We were physicians, academics, journalists, writers, activists, high-tech professionals, and students. It was arranged by San Francisco-based Global Exchange and we were there for 8 days. We spent our time in Havana and Matanzas meeting with our female counterparts in Cuba and discussing economics, gender relations, health care, music, art, gay rights, education, prison conditions, literature, and always politics. We also danced, drank Cuban rum and puffed Cuba's most prized export. One component of the trip was a set of three writing workshops led by Evelyn C. White, a prominent Bay Area writer currently working on a biography of Alice Walker. The workshops gave me an opportunity to begin to capture some of my impressions during the trip. Four pieces inspired by my visit to Cuba are included here.
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Here are a few excellent books about Cuba:
- Cuba Confidential - Ann Louise Bardach
- The Reader's Companion to Cuba - Alan Ryan
- Trading With the Enemy: A Yankee Travels Through Castro's Cuba - Tom Miller
